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Moral Eyes: Youth and Justice in Cameroon, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, and South Africa

Sharlene Swartz, Anye Nyamnjoh, Emma Arogundade, Jessica Breakey, and Abioseh Bockarie
Moral Eyes: Youth and Justice in Cameroon, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, and South Africa
ISBN: 978-0-7969-2511-4
$25.00
2018/161 pages
Distributed for HSRC Press
"Global North readers, of whom I hope there will be many, will derive great illumination from seeing familiar issues of social justice discussed in a wholly African context, including a diversity unlikely to be familiar to these readers. Moral Eyes is a wonderful book and an excellent contribution to the literature on moral education, social justice, and the moral character of transitions to a more just society." —Lawrence Blum, University of Massachusetts

"In light of long-standing legacies of colonialism and imperialism, Southern scholars and African nations need alternative modalities and approaches to engage adequately in dialogue about past ‘injustices.’ Moral Eyes offers a forward-looking view of (social) restitution as one such approach. This is an invaluable piece of work." —Chammah J. Kaunda, University of KwaZulu-Natal

DESCRIPTION

Grappling with issues of privilege and injustice in four African countries, the authors of Moral Eyes draw on extensive interviews with university students to demonstrate how injustices not only evolve over time, but also find a place within the collective memory of young people. Their work, encompassing questions of religion, language, ethnicity, and race, powerfully demonstrates how injustice persists despite changes in political leadership and processes of democratization

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Sharlene Swartz is executive director of the Education and Skills Development Programme at the Human Sciences Research Council. Anye Nyamnjoh is a researcher at HSRC. Emma Arogundade is conducting research in the Sociology Department at the University of Cape Town. Jessica Breakey is conducting research in the Sociology Department at the University of Cambridge. Abioseh Bockarie is conducting research in development studies at the University of the Western Cape.

CONTENTS

  • HISTORIES OF INJUSTICE.
  • Studying Privilege and Injustice: Why, How, and from Whose Perspective.
  • Race in South Africa: The Unraveling Rainbow.
  • Language and "The Anglophone Problem" in Cameroon: A Loveless Marriage.
  • Ethnic Conflict in Sierra Leone: A Terrifying Silence.
  • Interrelated Fault Lines of Religion, Ethno-Politics and Language in Nigeria: Divided By Rule.
  • RESTITUTION.
  • How Is Speaking of Restitution Helpful?
  • Locating Selves and the Past in the Present.
  • The Moral Role of Victims.
  • Tracing Spider Webs: The Role of Privilege in Injustice.
  • Ostriches: Knowing But Failing to Act.
  • A THEORY OF CHANGE.
  • How Change Happens: Seeing and Acting.
  • The Possibility of Emancipatory Narrative Research.