Jameliah Shorter Bourhanou

_In _Africa and the Metaphysical Empire_, Frank Aragnonfoh Abumere considers whether Africa can truly be said to be in a postcolonial phase. This is an ongoing question precisely because Africa is often described in ways that emphasize its colonial history rather than what Africa is and who Africans are apart from colonialism. Should Africans, in an effort to retain their authenticity, seek to cast off all western ways? Or is it sometimes permissible for Africans to engage in western cultural practices even as they are participating in decolonization work? In this review, I describe the intangible albeit impactful presence of a new kind of empire, the metaphysical empire that Abumere argues is still present in Africa. I also consider Abumere’s solution to the western/non-western tension in African culture, in which Abumere allows for some incorporation of western culture even as he argues for authenticity in African culture for Africans. _.

In its efforts toward improving diversity, the discipline of philosophy has tended to focus on increasing the number of black philosophers. One crucial issue that has received less attention is the extent to which black philosophers are delegitimized in the discipline because their philosophical contributions challenge the status quo. A systematic problem that bars black philosophers from equal and full participation, this delegitimization precludes the emergence of genuine diversity and reveals the importance of interrogating broader attitudes toward black philosophical contributions. In this essay, I argue for radical systematic changes to disciplinary hallmarks of professionalization such as pedagogy, mentoring, publishing, and hiring practices with the aim of legitimizing black philosophers and their contributions.