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Formations of the Secular
Talal Asad has produced some interesting books, his 2003 book “Formations of the Secular: Christianity, Islam, Modernity” is somewhat less powerful as a collective narrative since it draws on previously published materials (as opposed to a narrative that is linked throughout), nonetheless some interesting ideas from two decades past: “What is the connection between “the […]
Tags: #Anthropology #Formations of the Secular #Secular myths #Secularism #Talal Asad
Colonial Effects
Emerging out of a PhD study, Joseph A. Massad published “Colonial Effects: The Making of National Identity in Jordan” (2001). This is a fascinating book, which should be more widely read. Although it focuses on Jordan, there are insights for research on nationality, nationalism, colonialism, decolonization, and identity, in additional to Middle Eastern studies. Some […]
Tags: #Colonialism #Identity #Jordan #Nationalism #Nationality
Islamic Education, Embodied Knowledge, and History in West Africa
Rudolph T. Ware III published “The Walking Qur’an: Islamic Education, Embodied Knowledge, and History in West Africa” in 2014, with the University of North Carolina Press. Am arriving at the text late, after having it in my “too read” pile for too long. A few notes: “We must see beyond race and put Africans back […]
Tags: #Embodied knowledge #Epistemology #Islam #Islamic education #West Africa
The New Age of Empire
Kehinde Andrews’ 2021 book “The New Age of Empire: How Racism and Colonialism Still Rule the World” was celebrated by many (Kimberle Crenshaw, Russel Brand, Ibram X Kendi, and a host of book reviewers) and critiqued by a few (book reviewers). The author is the first professor of Black Studies in the UK. I assume […]
Tags: #Colonialism #Kehinde Andrew #Racism #The New Age of Empire #White Supremacy
Debtfare States and the Poverty Industry
In 2014, Susanne Soederberg published “Debtfare States and the Poverty Industry: Money, Discipline and the Surplus Population” presenting a unique counter-narrative to many of the global development buzzwords (such as financial inclusion). The book focuses on examples in two countries, each with unique examples. In the US, the author examines credit cards, student loans and […]
Tags: #Debrtfare #Debt #Poverty Industry #Soederberg #Surplus Population
The Postcolonial African State in Transition
I have had Amy Niang’s 2018 “The Postcolonial African State in Transition: Stateness and Modes of Sovereignty” in my to-read pile for too long, and I am glad I finally got to it. This is a heavy book, but one that makes really interesting contributions and raises thought provoking questions. In the opening, the author […]
Tags: #Amy Niang #postcolonial #sovereignty #State #Stateness
About me
Logan Cochrane
Associate Professor at HBKU in the College of Public Policy. He is an Associate Fellow of the Ethiopian Academy of Sciences and an Adjunct Professor at Hawassa University (Institute for Policy and Development Research). Over the last fifteen years, he has worked in Afghanistan, Benin, Burundi, Canada, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Egypt, Ethiopia, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, South Sudan, Tanzania and Uganda. Logan acts as a consultant for governmental agencies and non-governmental organizations, seeking to create bridges between research and practice.
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