“And now we resist”: Three testimonios on the importance of decoloniality within psychology
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
6-2022
Publisher
The Society for the Psychological Study of Social Issues/John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Abstract
In recent years, the field of psychology has turned to decoloniality as a potential epistemological standpoint and framework to understand how systems of power reproduce oppression (Fanon, 1963; Fernández, 2018; Maldonado-Torres, 2016; Quijano, 2000). In classroom and community-engaged research settings, critical community psychologists, specifically those grounded in a decolonial feminist epistemology (Bell, 2018; Dutta, 2018; Fernandez, 2018; Silva & the Students for Diversity Now, 2018), use this standpoint to analyze how they can co-create opportunities for decolonial justice. Using testimonios as decolonial method, we reflect on how we resist colonialism within our work, specifically our teaching, research, and practice. Drawing on our lived experiences, which have been rendered unwanted subjects within the field, our testimonios are an example of how we individually and relationally engage decoloniality and decolonization as both praxis and pedagogy. Combined, we illustrate how relational reflective narratives through testimonio can illuminate the field's commitment to decolonial liberation and the dismantling of oppressive systems.
Recommended Citation
Silva, J. M., Fernández, J. S., & Nguyen, A. (2021). “And now we resist”: Three testimonios on the importance of decoloniality within psychology. Journal of Social Issues, 77(2), 1-25. https://doi.org/10.1111/josi.12449
