Social Memory As a Force for Social and Economic Transformation

This volume of essays is a reflection on social memory as a force for social and economic transformation.

Written by scholars and organic intellectuals, it focuses on the uses of social memory, in particular the conflict between the legacies of colonialism and the movement for fundamental change. The content addresses both experts and ordinary citizens alike, with a view to advancing discourse on where we are right now, and how we move on from here to achieve meaningful transformation. As scholars and public representatives with a deep understanding of the social, economic and political dynamics of modern history of South Africa, the contributors offer their unique perspectives and reflections on history, politics, economics, culture, education, ethics and the arts, as well as the links that bind these aspects into an ecology of ideas and attitudes.

Muxe Nkondo, formerly Andrew Mellon Fellow in English and Visiting Professor at Harvard University, Visiting Scholar at Oxford University, Visiting Professor at Northwestern University, Chicago; one of 500 intellectuals from Africa and the diaspora, invited, in 2004, by the African Union to advise it on policy and related issues. Currently, he is a member of Council of the University of South Africa, and Chairperson of the Rixaka Forum and Collins Chabane Foundation. He has written extensively on the political economy of knowledge, language, culture and fundamental change, with a focus on South Africa.