Voices from the periphery: a critique of postcolonial theories and development practice

Nikolas Wagner Bozzolo

Third World Quarterly, 2022, vol. 43, issue 7, 1765-1782

Abstract: This paper examines the tension between development practice and postcolonial and decolonial theories. The postcolonial and decolonial critiques of development primarily criticise the Eurocentrism of the development discourse, which prevents so-called ‘subalterns’ from living politically self-determined lives. To evaluate both development policy and its post/decolonial critiques, the paper conducts a qualitative content analysis of song lyrics from the rap music of São Paulo, Brazil, comparing the political demands present in the lyrics with the most important aspects of development policy. São Paulo rap is chosen as it represents an organic politico-cultural movement from the peripheries of one of the largest metropolises in the so-called Global South. The paper concludes that, in terms of basic needs, the will of the ‘subalterns’ is not significantly different from what development practice offers. Beyond that, it also concludes that both development policy and postcolonialism overlook the problem of the political construction of inequalities.

Date: 2022
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DOI: 10.1080/01436597.2022.2067039

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