The Subjectification of Black Engineering Educators: A Posthumanist Cartography

Abstract

We are three Black engineering educators in South Africa who are inspired by the work of Ezekiel Dixon-Román and Eve Tuck. We critique several so-called “universal truths” that are apparent in engineering education from a posthumanist standpoint and focus on the subjectification of Black engineering academics. We draw a cartography of engineering education, to show how subjectivities are influenced by powerful agencies. The cartography gives an idea of the potestas that is exerted upon educators as a result of historical forces. We then give an idea of the potentia that is possible through micro-instances of activism.

Ncedile Saule’s Umlimandlela (at the cross-roads) as a witness to colonial and apartheid lexicology in South Africa

“…Diko (2022b) confirms this in that we should be more concerned about the latest incidents of colonialism and apartheid in South Africa, and we should begin to challenge them. For example, there have been numerous reports of racism (incidents that are entrenched in colonialism and apartheid) in certain South African schools (Motala et al, 2023). This is enough to indicate that there is a problem as far as colonialism and racism are implicated in South Africa.…”