This is a part of the article series Decolonial Praxis: Going Beyond Empty Words, edited by Fernando David Márquez Duarte, Dulce Alarcón Payán and Javier Daniel Alarcón Mares. Editorial and Translation Assistant: Lorenia Gutiérrez Moreto Cruz.

It has been 532 years since the beginning of the invasion by colonial empires (1492) around the world. After more than half a millennia, societies and peoples around the world still struggle against the consequences of colonial structures, which have concretized in the neocolonial capitalist system in which we live. In this edited volume, authors from different territories and ethnic groups collaborate with papers based on Decolonial Praxis, including authors from México, Peru, Brazil, and Indigenous authors from the Chontal and P’urhépecha Indigenous groups. This edited volume, through eight chapters and the Riverside Declaration on Decolonial Praxis, showcases different perspectives and research works conducted through Decolonial Praxis, plus this introduction. 

To think of Decolonial Praxis, it is necessary to begin by acknowledging the colonial oppressions that have been imposed on different groups and communities around the world and the consequences that these oppressions have caused in different peoples and their lands; we cannot build alternative societies for the future without naming the oppressive structures and recognizing the role that colonial and neocolonial powers have played in our past and present; this is from where decoloniality arises. Moreover, to discuss what we mean by decoloniality and Decolonial Praxis is becoming more and more necessary, since the approach is getting increasingly popular, and more and more scholars are using it to describe anything and everything without really understanding and respecting where it comes from or its essence. We argue that it is necessary to step back to discuss Decolonial Praxis in depth. 

Decolonial Praxis begins with decoloniality. The base of decoloniality is in understanding colonial oppressions and how they are intertwined in order to challenge them. The colonial matrix of oppressions is composed of the coloniality of power, knowledge, being and mother nature. Coloniality of power refers to the structure imposed by western colonial empires in which a hierarchy based on race and class dominates the institutions and is perpetuated by the nation-state. Coloniality of knowledge refers to western forms of science and knowledge imposed in the “Global South” that marginalize other forms of science and saberes that do not comply with western terms. Coloniality of being refers to the dehumanization of all people that differ from the image of western colonial “modernity” and considers them inferior, which is clearly linked with the coloniality of power. Finally, coloniality of mother nature refers to the ethno- and anthropocentric ideals of colonialism, where neocolonial capitalist elites (mostly rich, white men) are considered superior. Thus, these elites appropriate, destroy and privatize all life on the planet, including animals, plants, oceans, rivers, mountains, forests, and jungles (Quijano 2000; 2015; Walsh 2007; 2008). Decoloniality then can be understood as a process of humanization and liberation of individuals and societies (in both levels) where the objective is to fight to achieve emancipation from the multiple forms of western colonial oppression (Walsh 2013, 54).

Decoloniality is a constant process rather than a stance or a moment, and it arises from the recognition and acknowledgement of colonial invasion and the establishment of oppressive structures; this movement seeks to advance towards the emancipation of colonial oppression, in order to build more just societies, while taking advantage of the achievements made against colonial structures, such as the resurgence and recognition of Indigenous cultures, the addressing of systemic racism and inequality and the strengthening of anticolonial movements around the world. However, this does not mean that there is just one definition of decoloniality. One cannot impose a universal definition of decoloniality, because that would be a form of coloniality of knowledge, but it is important to have a thorough discussion of the idea since the popularity of decoloniality is increasing. It is used more and more as a loose term to refer to anything alternative, and decoloniality goes way further that just being alternative; one can be alternative without criticizing the colonial oppressions; one can be alternative without proposing a system that is more just and humane. 

When ‘decolonization ‘ (a term that is often used instead of decoloniality, by educational institutions) is attempted solely by academics in a ‘top-down ‘ fashion, without collaborating with Indigenous groups and/or other oppressed groups, it can become another form of exoticization by those in power, like it is used in Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Initiatives (DEI) in many universities in the United States. Moreover, several works that self-identify as decolonial focus solely on the individual, which is antithetical to the life and thought of many Indigenous communities and other oppressed groups and is antithetical to Decolonial Praxis.

To discuss our definition of Decolonial Praxis and our stance on it not only as a theoretical issue, but as a political process, we rely on the Riverside Declaration on Decolonial Praxis, which is included an appendix to this article (see below). In Decolonial Praxis, we argue that one cannot talk about ‘decolonizing yourself’ if this is just an individualistic way of feeling good about oneself or feeling unique. Decoloniality has to be rooted in and exercised through praxis, with and from oppressed groups in a constant search for emancipation from capitalist, racist, and patriarchal oppression.

For us, Decolonial Praxis is a process of constant resistance against the colonial matrix of oppression. It is collective resistance, it is joining forces with oppressed groups or, as Enrique Dussel (2006) argues, it is finding hegemonic vindication. It is finding a common cause to fight together against the oppressors, and it is acting from solidarity with other people and groups, understanding that although a form of oppression does not directly affect you, solidarity resistance is necessary. Exercising Decolonial Praxis through collective and communal resistance is not easy. It implies going beyond sectarianism and identitarianism. It is participating in social struggles hand-in-hand with peoples and communities that do not share the same identity but decide to unite in solidarity for struggles against all colonial oppressions at the same time, seeking racial, economic and social justice. 

As scholars, the praxis element entirely shifts what we assume and understand about others and makes us more empathetic to their situations and struggles, which in turn makes our research richer and more complete. Decolonial authors not only discuss the unequal power relations in academia but also propose an important change to the role of the scholar. This is a direct critique of western scholars that show an elitist position by wanting to impose their vision of what is necessary to do to oppressed groups without going to the field first to understand their reality and perspectives. This is also a critique of those that go to ‘developing ‘ countries and societies, believing ‘they can really decide what is good and what is bad for ‘developing countries’. 

This issue is not just a problem of western scholarship, but also of alienated locals in developing countries ‘who, because of imperial and capitalist cosmology, were led to believe… that what is good for developed countries is good for underdeveloped’ countries (Mignolo 2009: 172, 173). This is also exemplified by International Organizations (IOs) that decide what is best for the Global South, instead of recognizing the right to self-determination and recognizing that only people that live the reality of each territory every day, probably know best how to solve their issues (Merry and Wood 2015; Ojeda Medina and Villareal Villamar 2020). This point has also been made by decolonial authors from other parts of the Global South when discussing Orientalism (Said 1979), or by Godrej (2008) who bases on Gandhi’s ideas to highlight the importance of being part of the causes of the oppressed groups in the field; for example, Godrej addresses the concepts of atma-darsan and satyano sakshatkar to argue that scholars had to live the journey themselves to have a real understanding of the issues and causes. This is also shown with the study of the resistance in defense of water against transnational capital in Mexicali, where oppressed groups are the ones that have to lead the discussion and frame their cause and demands with their own perspectives and cosmovision. The scholar’s role is to support their cause in the way that oppressed groups consider, where they make their voice heard and scholars pass the megaphone to them; using the platform and legitimacy of academia to let them speak and be heard (Márquez Duarte 2022). 

Decolonial Praxis challenges colonial oppression in different areas of life: generating knowledge, education, thinking, working, living, distributing resources and power, and defending the land. This article series presents diverse papers based on of some of the best works of the Decolonial Praxis Conference. It features authors from different countries: Mexico, Brazil, Peru, including Indigenous authors from the Yokot’an Indigenous group. Together, they demonstrate how Decolonial Praxis in its different forms can serve as a medium of resistance in a world marked by political, social, economic, and cultural inequalities perpetuated by a colonial conception of the world. It is composed of seven chapters, each addressing a specific topic with its own theoretical and methodological approach seeking to shed light on specific problems and situations addressed through a Decolonial Praxis perspective.

The articles that follow all understand that Decolonial Praxis is a collective effort that goes beyond individuality and sectarianism. They all understand that oppressed groups lead these efforts themselves, even where cases began as institutionalized projects or spaces. They all understand that the role of scholars is not to impose their own vision, or to stay in the elitist spaces of academic discussions, that are the most comfortable for neocolonial capitalist elites. The role of scholars is in the field with oppressed groups. Articles 1 and 2 are cases where oppressed groups themselves have led the research projects as Participatory Action Research (PAR), guiding the principles and processes of the cases shown. Articles 3 through 5 showcase research that began as institutional projects but were appropriated by participants, turning them from processes that were created just to comply with institutional requirements into Decolonial Praxis projects used by students from marginalized and Indigenous communities, Indigenous groups, and black communities, respectively, to resist colonial oppression. Articles 6 and 7 contain historical analysis and a discussion of the role of the state and capital in the imposition of colonial oppression in territories ranging from México to Colombia. Although these chapters are more theoretical, they are undoubtedly based on Decolonial Praxis, analyzing cases of how oppressed groups have resisted colonial oppression and continue to do so. 

The first article presents the case of the Mexicali Committee in Solidarity with Palestine, as a project that is embedded in Decolonial Praxis. This gives an overview of the genocide and oppression carried out by the state of Israel against the people of Palestine, explaining the historical and legal context of the situation, while also presenting the life experiences of one of the authors who is Palestinian-Mexican. This paper discusses the case study of the Mexicali Committee in Solidarity with Palestine as an example of Decolonial Praxis through its activities and campaigns, and the generation of awareness on the issue. This paper uses a qualitative approach with a Participatory Action Research (PAR) method, using participant observation, while also generating an extensive documentary review of the acts of the committee meetings, and bibliographic research for the theoretical and contextual sections.

The second article addresses the university as an institution that is important to rethink. It is not only an academic, theoretical, and technical space but also one that should commit to addressing social problems, creating social awareness, and implementing social projects that benefit the community. This paper analyzes the horizontal relationship between the university and Indigenous communities, presenting the case of the Camellones Chontales and the Community Extension Project. The research is based on a participatory methodology that actively involves the Indigenous community from conception to implementation and analysis of the project. A close collaboration with the community is conducted, which guarantees the integration of their perspectives and their knowledge, combating epistemic extractivism. 

The third article takes the route of a regional report and diagnosis regarding the secondary education level in its different modalities, locating the research in the Zacapu region of Michoacán, México. The diagnosis analyzes the conception that students have of school infrastructure, organization, and social relations in the community, while also analyzing the concept that the students have of themselves and of how history is taught and learned. The methodology is qualitative, based on techniques such as observation, interviews, and focus groups and analyzing the role of teachers and students in the region. 

The fourth article analyzes the Indigenous consultation for affirmative action in political participation in Baja California, understanding this mechanism as a space to develop critical consciousness. The article argues that the Indigenous consultation served as a path for fostering critical consciousness, political mobilization, and resistance of Indigenous peoples for the defense of their rights. A qualitative methodology is used to analyze Indigenous consultation, employing participatory observation and semi-structured interviews, as well as bibliographic and press archive review. 

In the fifth article the issue of how solidarity in communities can help resist hardships faced by marginalized people is analyzed. This article analyzes the way the community in Vale de Ribeira, São Paulo, Brazil, organized to maintain income and food security during the crisis generated by the COVID-19 pandemic, through the implementation of an Emergency Plan launched by farmers from the Quilombos (rural black communities) whose objective was to distribute produce and food to vulnerable families. It uses a participatory methodological approach based on a horizontal dialogue of knowledge and interculturality. The project integrates the communities of the Ribeira Valley and their ancestral knowledge that helped develop strategies to face the pandemic.

The sixth article is composed of an analysis of the war against narcotics and the guerra sucia as one integrated process through which the Mexican state sought to maintain its territorial hegemony with the implementation of operations such as Operación Cóndor, which directly affected the environment and the population living in what is known as the Golden Triangle, all while linking it with the concept of technoscience. This article constructs its methodology based on a case study of the state of Sinaloa, using an environmental history perspective. The main methodological element for this article is based on a historical analysis of the situation in Sinaloa and the Golden Triangle.  

The seventh, and final, article presents decoloniality as a current and political proposal that seeks to integrate knowledge and underrepresented groups who have been marginalized throughout history. This article considers decoloniality as a critical scientific community and a relevant research paradigm, as well as an epistemological and political proposal that integrates knowledge not considered valid by the Eurocentric perspective and seeks to give power to those who are underrepresented. The methodology used is mainly literature review and bibliography research, with discourse analysis; it offers an epistemological and political proposal, generating a theoretical overview and analysis of the concept but also presenting the changes throughout the years.  

In each article, the reader will find techniques, authors, theories, and methodologies useful for those with an interest in Decolonial Praxis. But the dossier does not limit itself to the academic arena, as it also presents life experiences, community projects, and resistance through activism. The importance of resistance through a decolonial perspective, and more importantly, through its practice, signifies the defense of the rights of all victims of colonialism and coloniality, while also signifying resistance against a system that justifies the detriment of the majority for the economic benefit of a few. Decolonial Praxis means the resistance of Indigenous communities, the working class, the poor, and scholars that denounce the abuse to the powerless and use their platform to highlight the voice of the voiceless. We hope the work presented in this dossier helps those who have found an interest in Decolonial Praxis.

We thank all communities and groups that were part of the cases studied in the chapters. Without oppressed groups willing to share their reality, this series of articles would not be possible. This is the essence of Decolonial Praxis: putting the platform of scholars in the service of the struggles of oppressed groups. In addition, we thank Lorenia, our editorial and translation assistant, who helped to put this dossier together and translated most of the articles. We hope this dossier motivates readers to take action and exercise Decolonial Praxis. Thank you all and enjoy the reading.

References

Dussel, Enrique. 2006. 20 Tesis de Política. Siglo XXI.

Godrej, Farah. 2008. ‘Towards a Cosmopolitan Political Thought: The Hermeneutics of Interpreting the Other. ‘ Polity 41 (2): 135–65.

Márquez Duarte, Fernando David. 2022. ‘El derecho al agua: El movimiento de las resistencias unidas contra la cervecera Constellation Brands. ‘ Campos en Ciencias Sociales 10 (2). https://doi.org/10.15332/25006681.7665.

Merry, Sally Engle, and Summer Wood. 2015. ‘Quantification and the Paradox of Measurement: Translating Children’s Rights in Tanzania. ‘ Current Anthropology 56 (2): 205–29.

Mignolo, Walter. 2009. ‘Epistemic Disobedience, Independent Thought and Decolonial Freedom. ‘ Theory, Culture & Society 26 (7–8): 159–81.

Ojeda Medina, Tahina, and María Villareal Villamar, eds. 2020. Pensamiento Crítico Latinoamericano Sobre Desarrollo. Desarrollo y Cooperación. Madrid: Instituto Universitario de Desarrollo y Cooperación.

Quijano, Aníbal. 2000. ‘Coloniality of Power and Eurocentrism in Latin America. ‘ International Sociology 15 (2): 215–32.

———. 2015. ‘Colonialidad Del Poder y Clasificación Social. ‘ Contextualizaciones Latinoamericanas, no. 5.

Said, Edward W. 1979. Orientalism. 1st ed. New York: Vintage.

Walsh, Catherine. 2007. ‘Interculturalidad y Colonialidad Del Poder. Un Pensamiento y Posicionamiento  ‘Otro ‘ Desde La Diferencia Colonial. ‘ In El Giro Decolonial. Reflexiones Para Una Diversidad Epistémica Más Allá Del Capitalismo Global, 47–62. Encuentros. Siglo del Hombre Editores.

———. 2008. ‘Interculturalidad, Plurinacionalidad y Decolonialidad: Las Insurgencias Político-Epistémicas de Refundar El Estado. ‘ Tabula Rasa, no. 9, 131–52.

———. 2013. Pedagogías Decoloniales: Prácticas Insurgentes de Resistir,(Re) Existir y (Re) Vivir. Abya Yala.

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Appendix: Riverside Declaration on Decolonial Praxis

*Note, this version has been translated into English and adapted from the original Declaration.

More than 530 years after the colonial invasion of Abya Yala and the global imposition of colonial capitalism, we continue to live the multiple forms of oppression imposed since that invasion. This Declaration is a written positioning from the oppressed, marginalized, racialized, and allied subjects within and beyond the academy. As a context it is important to recognize that the lands where we are in(Riverside, United States), were taken from the Kizh, Tongva, Serrano, Cahuilla and Luiseño Indigenous peoples, likewise the Indigenous peoples of the lands from which the authors of this Declaration come: Cucapáh, Mapuche, P’urhépecha, Tahues, Chontales, Tutunakú, and Triqui.

Our starting point is to understand that we live in a situation of neocolonial oppression, where there are different levels of oppression, often superimposed. We understand that neocolonial oppression is composed of class, racial and gender oppression, in an intertwined way and that efforts against this oppression have to be against all oppressions at the same time. The struggle against racism must be a struggle against capitalism and against patriarchy; it is not possible to move towards emancipation from neocolonial oppression without fighting capitalism, racism and patriarchy at the same time. Within these oppressions are also manifested, inherently, ableism, fascism, militarism, classism, extractivism, and subtler forms such as tokenism, white saviorism, green colonialism, sexism, and mass incarceration, among others.

To resist neocolonial oppression and move towards emancipation from the multiple intertwined forms of oppression that make up the colonial matrix of oppression (Quijano, 2000, 2015), it is necessary that the oppressed groups of the world fight in coalition against the oppressions they suffer in common, in the form of a hegemonic vindication (Dussel, 2006), and the starting point is awareness, through dialectical, dialogic and popular interactions (Freire, 1970). This does not mean homogenizing the different struggles but recognizing the similarities, recognizing and respecting the different identities and levels of oppression, and recognizing that the most oppressed people are those who suffer multiple oppressions at the same time, such as poor Indigenous women, Indigenous people with disabilities, poor black people, poor and racialized LGBT people, immigrants in poverty and with disabilities, among others.

However, the recognition of differences must not fall into sectarianism or isolationism in an identity matter. The struggle for emancipation from the oppression we live in is a collective struggle based on solidarity and mutual support, not on white capitalist individualism. One cannot talk about “decolonizing oneself” alone. If decoloniality is not based on and exercised through praxis, with and from oppressed groups in the constant search for emancipation from capitalist, racist, patriarchal, and other forms of oppression, then it is just one more elitist-postmodern concept

Oppressions, deaths, names

We begin this section by recognizing the legacy and resistance of so many people killed by the elites of the neocolonial, capitalist, patriarchal and violent system in which we live, such as the 43 Ayotzinapa students, Samir Flores Soberanes, George Floyd, Berta Cáceres Flores, Oscar Eyraud, Marisela Escobedo, Yoryanis Bernal Varela, Marielle Franco, Ari Uru-Eu-Wau-Wau, Ulises Rumiche Quintimari, Inti Sotelo, Bryan Pintado, Alan Kurdi, Macarena Valdez, Tomás Rojo, Homero Gómez González, the Quintremán sisters, Emilia Milén ‘Bau ‘ Herrera Obrecht, Matías Catrileo, and Eugui Roy, among others.

At the global level we are suffering intolerable situations of oppression, violence, and necropolitics, such as the genocide and dispossession of the Palestinian people, the genocide in Sudan and Congo, the capitalist war Ukraine-Russia, the violent repression of protests in Peru, femicide and the murder of journalists in Mexico, mass incarceration in El Salvador, the humanitarian crisis and genocide of the Yanomami Indigenous people in Brazil, police violence, repression, immigrants terrorizing and kidnapping, and mass shootings against people of color in the United States, the widespread violence in Latin America imposed by organized crime, the juvenicidios and forced displacement, the rise of the extreme right in countries such as Argentine, Ecuador, El Salvador, France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Spain, Sweden, the United States, among others.   

These are not isolated events; they are manifestations of the putrefaction of the neocolonial-capitalist-patriarchal system, where elites seek increasingly exacerbated forms of exploitation of the masses in order to accumulate more profit and continue to concentrate wealth. Some of the current situations of oppression are: Weapons’ industry profiting from wars and armed conflicts, the control of oil and gas pipelines, violent repression of marginalized groups seeking justice and democracy in peaceful protests, killings of Indigenous peoples to expropriate their land, police brutality as the perpetuation of capitalist white supremacy, privatization of health systems causing the deaths of millions of people, to name a few.

The signatories of this Declaration definitively oppose all these forms of oppression and denounce the elites that are guilty of them, including businessmen, politicians, lobbyists, narcos, police, and the military, who are tentacles of the capitalist neocolonial hydra (Comisión Sexta EZLN, 2015). We unite in solidarity with the groups of our sisters and brothers, with our people, with the people who live exploited, marginalized, violated, to perpetuate the neocolonial-capitalist-patriarchal system.

Resistance, solidarity, sororidad

Decolonial Praxis is constant resistance, but it is collective resistance; it is joining forces with oppressed groups; it is finding the common cause to fight together against the oppressor; it is acting in solidarity with other people, with other groups, understanding that although a form of oppression does not directly affect oneself, solidary resistance is necessary. Even if one does not have a disability, they have to fight against ableism and discrimination against people with disabilities because there is no way to achieve emancipation from colonial oppression without fighting at the same time collectively against all oppressions. We must fight constantly against colonialism, capitalism, racism, patriarchy, and against the inherent forms of oppression they generate.

Decolonial Praxis implies not only solidarity but also sororidad, which is the support and mutual recognition of authority, courage and solidarity to be true allies (Lagarde, 2016). Sororidad arises from critical feminism and implies cooperation and support between women, as well as the understanding that all genders can be allies, and highlights the need for spaces exclusively for women to build sororidad and feminist support so that, in larger movements and struggles, they can move through sororidad with people of different genders, recognizing the leadership of women in these struggles. Likewise, exercising Decolonial Praxis with sororidad implies that feminisms put at the center the most oppressed women as Indigenous and black women, who suffer even triple oppression: gender, class, race, and disability. Practicing a decolonial feminism implies, as the Maya Xinka Indigenous activist Lorena Cab’Nal says: “a feminist proposal that integrates the historical and daily struggle of our peoples for the recovery and defense of the land territory” (Cabnal, 2010, p. 22).

Exercising Decolonial Praxis through collective and communal resistance, solidarity and sororidad is not easy, but it is one of the most beautiful forms of love: community love, love through social struggles hand in hand with people, communities, that although they do not share the same identity, unite in solidarity for struggles against all oppressions caused by colonial oppressions at the same time, seeking racial, economic and linguistic justice.

The role of pedagogy, academia and the university

The idea has been imposed at the global level that only western knowledge taught in formal spaces is valid, that only positivist science is worthwhile and that everything else, such as saberes, lived experiences, cosmovision, popular struggles, and oral histories, is inferior. We the signatories declare that all saberes are important and valid, and it is crucial that they be preserved, revitalized and perpetuated both inside and outside the university. We also declare that it is necessary that the curriculum of the universities is based on the local reality and that it is based on the relationship with Indigenous peoples of the region and with the land, as Indigenous intellectuals have asserted (Wildcat et al., 2014), and it is also important to highlight pedagogies from oppressed spaces, such as prisons, social movements, grassroots collectives and barrios.

The Decolonial Praxis in education has to go beyond the actions of “decolonizing the curriculum” (which are just simulations). Decolonizing the curriculum is not just quoting more authors of color; decolonizing curriculum is Indigenous thinkers teaching in universities. Great Indigenous thinkers have shared such important thoughts with the world but remain marginalized from much of academia, such as Ailton Krenak (2019), Linda Tuhiwai Smith (2016), Aura Cumes (2012), Floriberto Díaz Gómez (RIP) (2001), Ngugi Thiong ‘O (1987), and Francisco López Bárcenas (2002), among others. Decolonizing the curriculum is to give recognition and space to defenders of the land, of rights, of working class activists, of popular struggles; it is to instill an ethical vision in all disciplines so that the new generations apply what they learn in the university to improve the living conditions of the most oppressed groups; it is to carry out work with impact for their community; it is to fight against colonialism-capitalism-racism-patriarchy and through solidary South-South cooperation. It is urgent that universities recover their essence as critical and fighting spaces, that Marxist authors recover not only classics such as Marx, Lenin and Trotsky, but also Marxist authors of the Global South and decolonials such as Angela Davis  (1981), Enrique Dussel (1973, 2020), Pablo González Casanova (2006), Frantz Fanon (1963), Rune Dunayevskaya (1986), Bolívar Echeverría (1989), Amílcar Cabral  (1966), Glen Coulthard (2014), Thomas Sankara (2001), Nancy Fraser (2009), and Michael Lowy (2014), among others.  

However, we must not lose sight of the fact that although universities are spaces where efforts at Decolonial Praxis can be generated, like this same Declaration, they are still colonial spaces, where capitalist, racist, ableist and misogynist structures continue to be legitimized. In US academia especially, there is an intense and widespread privatization of public universities, where increasingly exorbitant tuition fees are charged, while those who carry the majority of academic work (that is, graduate students who work as class and/or research assistants), are paid a pittance, while being threatened with dismissals without justification, workers with disabilities are denied the necessary conditions to work, etc. Likewise, academic violence against both undergraduate and graduate students by university administrators and professors, is still very present, especially towards students of color, the poor, the disabled and international students.

Most universities are hostile spaces towards these students, and DEI initiatives do nothing but cover up the problems to meet administrative requirements. It is necessary that we decolonial scholars exercise Decolonial Praxis fighting against colonial oppression in academia, within our institutions, but also that our efforts transcend them. It is necessary to work supporting the struggles of oppressed groups in the ways that oppressed groups need and on their terms. One cannot be a decolonial scholar sitting comfortably in the office, seeking more “prestige” or a better “position”, without truly working with oppressed groups. Decoloniality without praxis is a simulation.

Tasks in Decolonial Praxis

In this Declaration on Decolonial Praxis we declare that the most urgent tasks (that have to be exercised together) to resist colonial oppression and move towards emancipation from the neocolonial-capitalist-racist-patriarchal system in which we live are:

• Promote the organization of grassroots local bodies with decision-making power over the policies and public actions that affect us, some organizational experiences from which bases can be taken are the soviets (Trotsky, 2009), the calpullis (Romero Vargas Yturbide, 1988), the factory committees (Pateman, 1970), the spaces of popular workers’ education (Freire,  1993), the fogatas of the community of Cherán (Hernández García, 2020), and the Indigenous self-defense groups (Mattiace et al., 2019), among others, seeking taking political power by the people, to prevent falling in a simulation as some self-proclaimed ‘progressive’ government of Latin America.
• Fight for collective and public ownership of the big means of production, at the hands of organized people, not of a bureaucratic clique, nor of political parties.
• Organize in defense of territories threatened by transnational capital, mining consortiums such as Grupo México (Perez Jiménez, 2020) and others (Gudynas, 2022), companies that seek to privatize water, such as Constellation Brands (Márquez Duarte, 2022), and all destructive megaprojects that dispossess Indigenous groups and rural communities of their lands (Concejo Indígena de Gobiero, 2020; López Bárcenas, 2012), as well as organized crime groups (Hernández García, 2020; Mattiace et al., 2019).
• Organization of popular and collective education spaces inside and outside the university, both in-person and online, for workers, Indigenous communities, and oppressed groups that do not have access to formal education, with horizontality and reciprocity, cognitive justice, and harmonious relations with all lifeforms and the land. Likewise, with an anticapitalist, antipatriarchal, antiableist and antiracist approach. An example is the recovering of traditional medicine including it in the curricula of health sciences.

Either everything for everyone or we disrupt the system!

Collaborators

Fernando Márquez Duarte – México, Dulce Alarcón Payán – México, Zaira Vidal Cortés – México/Estados Unidos, Alen Tripailaf Raimilla – Indígena Mapuche – Chile, Daniel Alarcón Mares – México, Edna Duarte Hernández – México, José Mario Suárez – México, Alessandro Biazzi Couto – Brasil, Norma Cruz Salazar – Indígena Triqui – México, Elia Hernández Hernández – Indígena Tutunakú – México, Edgar de la Cruz Rojas – Indígena Chontal – México, Elida Vargas Diaz – Indígena P ‘urhépecha – México

References

Cabnal, L. (2010). Acercamiento a la construcción de la propuesta de pensamiento epistémico de las mujeres indígenas feministas comunitarias de Abya Yala. In Momento de paro: Tiempo de rebelión.

Cabral, A. (1966, January). Fundamentos e objetivos da libertação nacional em relação com a estrutura social.

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Concejo Indígena de Gobierno. (2020, June 30). Jornada de lucha en contra del T-MEC y los megaproyectos, Tren Maya y Corredor Interoceánico. Enlace Zapatista. https://enlacezapatista.ezln.org.mx/2020/06/30/jornada-de-lucha-en-contra-del-t-mec-y-los-megaproyectostren-maya-y-corredor-interoceanico/

Coulthard, G. S. (2014). Red skin, white masks: Rejecting the colonial politics of recognition (1st ed.). U of Minnesota Press.

Cumes, A. E. (2012). Mujeres indígenas patriarcado y colonialismo: Un desafío a la segregación comprensiva de las formas de dominio. Anuario de Hojas de WARMI, 17.

Davis, A. Y. (1981). Women, race, & class. Vintage.

Díaz Gómez, F. (2001). Comunidad y comunalidad. La Jornada Semanal, 314, 12.

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Further Reading on E-International Relations

• The Mexicali Committee in Solidarity with Palestine as a Case of Decolonial Praxis
• Notes for Thinking about Feminist Foreign Policy from a Decolonial and Communitarian Feminist Perspective
• A Decolonial Approach to the Scope of Knowledge Power in Latin America
• Decolonising Resilience: Rethinking ‘Local Knowledge’, Opacity and Coloniality
• Unthinkable and Invisible International Relations
• Intersectional Decoloniality: Listening to the Other ‘Others’