Leah Bassel Book order

What does existence mean for Black women without the anchor of humanity and the struggle to inhabit it? How can one be oneself without being human? What is it to become a fugitive from the confines of ‘the human’? Humanity has always excluded Others on the basis of race and gender; this is a book about studying the contours of Black women’s non-humanity, to ask what people might become if they chose to flee, following the footsteps of those who resisted enslavement. This audacious manifesto investigates Black women’s processes of divesting from humanity, drawing on the legacies of bell hooks, Audre Lorde, Angela Davis and others in the pantheon of Black feminism. Sociologist Akwugo Emejulu combines the concepts ‘fugitive’ and ‘feminism’ to signal that Black women’s becoming must be grounded in a collective process of speculative dialogue and action for liberation. Fugitive Feminism speculates about an emancipated new world to prefigure another mode of living and being.

Focusing on listening as a vital social and political practice, the book examines its role in various contexts, including debates around culture and religion involving minority women, youth riots in France and England, and the intersection of citizen journalism with media creativity. It highlights the solidarity between migrant justice and indigenous activism, analyzing how a politics of listening can reshape the dynamics between speakers and listeners, particularly during adversarial political situations.

Bassel and Emejulu explore minority women's experiences of austerity measures in France and Britain. They demonstrate how they use their race, class, gender and legal status for collective action in the face of the neoliberal colonisation.

A critical examination of the contradictory ideas and practices that have shaped community development in the US and the UK. It exposes a problematic politics that have far-reaching consequences for those committed to working for social justice.

Focusing on the experiences of Somali refugee women, the book challenges prevailing debates about the impact of accommodating Islam on women's rights in Europe and North America. It critiques discussions surrounding issues like the headscarf and religious arbitration, arguing for a nuanced understanding of women's roles as active participants in democratic society. By moving beyond binary arguments, it emphasizes the complexity of women's lives and the importance of considering their perspectives in discussions about culture and religion.