What could a revolutionary thinker like Frantz Fanon possibly draw from the political philosophy of Friedrich Nietzsche, a self-proclaimed anti-egalitarian, anti-democrat, and anti-socialist? Nietzsche clearly influenced Black Skin, White Masks, a book framed by references to Nietzsche in its introductory and penultimate chapters. Although the first reference is a misattributed quotation, the second is a…| Blog of the APA
Introduction Contemporary critical theories of Black life, particularly Afropessimism as formulated by Frank Wilderson and the postcolonial fatalism found in Achille Mbembe’s On the Postcolony (2001), have produced a striking impasse: frameworks seeking to disclose the depth of Black negation increasingly foreclose the possibility of Black agency. In these accounts, Black subjectivity is rendered ontologically…| Blog of the APA
For years now, I have grappled with how to do philosophy as a trans person and how to do philosophy from the social position of trans. While the former simply negotiates my standing as gender-marginalized in the profession and the world, the latter takes that space of marginalization as a space of theorization. But I…| Blog of the APA
Frantz Fanon’s work has primarily been received through the lens of his political writings and the political aspects of his work. His psychiatric writings and psychoanalytic concepts, however, have not attracted nearly as much interest. Yet, because Fanon’s dual role as a psychiatrist and political thinker manifests itself in both his theoretical and practical work,…| Blog of the APA
Welcome, and thanks for joining the Blog! Could you tell us more about yourself? What do you think our readers should know about you? Thanks for having me! I’m someone who doesn’t fit neatly into any boxes. Take my name: my Iranian name is Shadi, which means “happiness” in Persian. When I immigrated to North America,…| Blog of the APA
The second Trump administration's attack on trans people is in full swing. Within hours of taking office for the second time, the president signed an executive order that described trans people as "ideologues who deny the biological reality of sex" and accused them of attacking not just the laws of biology but the safety of…| Blog of the APA
On the first anniversary of the hanging of John Brown, December 3, 1860, abolitionists from Boston and around the country assembled in Tremont Temple to discuss the question, “How can American slavery be abolished?” Among the scheduled speakers were John Brown Jr., Wendell Phillips, and Frederick Douglass. But the city’s business leaders, perhaps with support…| Blog of the APA
Over the last decade, philosophers have paid significant attention to the topic of sexual violence. Much of this work is socially engaged, building theory from analysis of real-life cases and empirical work on sexual violence. Various philosophers have employed concepts from the social sciences, such as “unacknowledged rape” and “rape myths,” in analyzing epistemic problems…| Blog of the APA
This past July, Robert L. Allen passed away at 82. As an undergraduate student, Allen had a very large impact on me. I took three courses with Dr. Allen, and I still remember the enthusiastic way he would say my name: “Ah, Thomas!” My appreciation of Allen’s scholarship and influence has continually burgeoned as I…| Blog of the APA
I was always amazed by and envious of the aloof effect conjured effortlessly by my peers when I was younger. I longed to master such a cool, collected demeanor. What grace and intrigue one must have to move about the world as if untouched by the existential weight of its (our) materiality! As I aged,…| Blog of the APA
In her 2023 Netflix special It’s Great to be Here, comedian Michelle Wolf makes two trans jokes. The second joke comes in the context of a segment that touches on themes of sexual violence and the racialized innocence of white women. Wolf mentions the statistics on femicide and notes “and then I heard about all…| Blog of the APA
Originally from Jamaica, Dr. Chevannes is an Assistant Professor of Political Science at the University of Memphis. Dr. Chevannes’s research surrounds the intersection of Africana Studies, Deaf Studies, and Caribbean Studies. His primary specialization is in political theory, focusing on Africana Political Theory with an emphasis on Black Liberatory Politics. Liahna Strout met with Dr.…| Blog of the APA