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Presenting: Notes on Two Cities
Yayra Sumah is a doctoral candidate in the department of Middle Eastern South Asian and African Studies. She holds bachelors and masters degrees in Political Science with a minor in African Studies from Boston University, magna cum laude. She is an interdisciplinary scholar with a research focus on the history of colonialism in Congo (DRC), Kimbanguism, African Christianity and Central African spirituality. Her dissertation brings together history, anthropology, religion, philosophy and political theory in an original interpretation of Simon Kimbangu's movement in Belgian Congo. It considers the stakes of the meaning of Kimbangu for the postcolonial African debate on what it means to be 'decolonized' and 'African'. Her interests also include poetry, art, activism and cultural criticism. She has written for Borderlines (Journal of the Comparative Studies of South Asia, Africa and the Middle East) and SUNU: Journal of African Affairs, Critical Thought + Aesthetics.
Discussant: Jia Hui Lee (MIT)
A week in advance, the presenter’s paper will be circulated through the Harvard African Studies Workshop listserv. It is assumed that everyone has read the paper before the workshop. After presentation and commentary, Workshop attendees are invited to engage in critique and discussion, under the moderation of the Workshop Chairs.
View workshop recordings here: https://vimeo.com/showcase/2369529
ORGANIZER(S): Harvard University Center for African Studies
EVENT WEBSITE: https://africa.harvard.edu/african-studies-workshop-0