From Race to Racism: A Reflection on the Problematics of “Race-based” Analysis


Antonia Darder, Loyola Marymount University

This presentation seeks to engage questions based on concerns, raised over the years, related to the focus and limitations of race-based analysis. In particular, this points to the weaponization of identity politics and race-based sectarianism, which can inadvertently obstruct necessary opportunities for political dialogues across different groups that should be natural allies, given their commitment to the struggle for social justice, human rights, and economic democracy. This discussion is grounded on works by Robert Miles, Ellen Meiksins Wood, Neville Alexander, Touré Reed, Arundhati Roy, and others who have posed counterarguments to problematize discussions that begin and end with the social construct of “race” as the major unit of analysis. This is an invitation to decolonize academic discourses singularly tied to race and to engage their implications on the streets. Key questions to consider: What has been gained by such an approach in the last 50 years? What has been lost or missed? How might we support greater solidarity and camaraderie across communities who are engaged in the larger struggle for liberation?

This paper will be presented at the following session: