Practitioners of decolonial theory and critical race theory (CRT) often use one or the other, but not both. In his provocative book, A Critical Synergy, Ali Meghji suggests using the two theories in tandem rather than attempting to hierarchize or synthesize them. Doing so allows for the study of social phenomena in a way that captures their global and historical roots, while acknowledging their local, national, and contemporary particularities.The differences between decol...

Sociology, as a discipline, was born at the height of global colonialism and imperialism. Over a century later, it is yet to shake off its commitment to colonial ways of thinking.This book explores why, and how, sociology needs to be decolonized. It analyses how sociology was integral in reproducing the colonial order, as dominant sociologists constructed theories either assuming or proving the supposed barbarity and backwardness of colonized people. Ali Meghji reveals how colonial...

This book analyses how racism and anti-racism affects Black British middle-class cultural consumption. In doing so, it challenges the dominant understanding of British middle-class identity and culture as being ‘beyond race’.Paying attention to the relationship between cultural capital and cultural repertoires, Meghji argues that there are three modes of black middle-class identity: strategic assimilation, ethnoracial autonomous, and class-minded. Individuals within each of these i...

Far from its origins in US legal studies in the 1980s, critical race theory has grown to become a leading approach to the analysis of racial inequality around the world. It has courted much controversy along the way, often misunderstood and poorly defined. So what precisely is critical race theory and what makes it different from other theories of race, racialization and racism?In this incisive book, Ali Meghji defines the contours of critical race theory through the notion of the ...

Despite progress, the Western higher education system is still largely dominated by scholars from the privileged classes of the Global North. This book presents examples of efforts to diversify points of view, include previously excluded people, and decolonize curricula.What has worked? What hasn’t? What further visions do we need? How can we bring about a more democratic and just academic life for all?Written by scholars from different disciplines, countries, and backgroun...