On August 31, 2024, the African Studies Association United Kingdom (ASAUK) conference at Oxford Brookes University hosted a panel titled “Imagining Otherwise: Re-memorying the February 1974 Ethiopian Revolution.” The session was co-organized by Surafel Wondimu Abebe, Assistant Professor of Performance Studies and Theory at The Africa Institute (GSU), Sharjah, and Semeneh Ayalew Asfaw, Fatema Mernissi Postdoctoral Fellow at The Africa Institute (GSU), Sharjah.
The panel was conducted in a hybrid format, with Professors Abebe and Asfaw participating in person, while Professors Martha Kuwee Kumsa from Wilfrid Laurier University, Canada and Luladey Tadesse Worku from Qatar University contributed remotely. The online participation was facilitated by Sataan Al Hassan, Director of Administration and Operations at The Africa Institute (GSU), Sharjah, with technical support provided by Behailu Shiferaw, a PhD student at Northwestern University.
The panel’s conceptual framework aimed to foster a nuanced understanding of the 1974 Ethiopian Revolution by engaging with the Ethiopian past from a present-day perspective. The discussion focused on the participation of non-elite groups in the revolution, exploring how political imaginaries were articulated and disarticulated then, and their connections to contemporary issues. This approach sought to complicate mainstream representations of the past and gain insight into the structural transformations and their impact on everyday life.
Surafel Wondimu Abebe presented on the role of theatre in revising historical narratives through his paper, “Staging the Trans/National-Popular: Decolonizing the Eurocentric Elitism through Theatre.” His work explored how theatre can challenge entrenched Eurocentric perspectives on the revolution.
Semeneh Ayalew Asfaw delivered a paper titled “1974: Ethnographies of Protest in Addis,” which examined the socio-cultural aspects of protest in Addis Ababa during the revolution, emphasizing the importance of popular histories in understanding political dynamics.
Martha Kuwee Kumsa presented “Genealogy of the 1974 Popular Revolution in Ethiopia: Critical Autoethnographic Reflections of a Recovering Old Revolutionary,” offering personal insights into the revolution’s impact by exploring the silencing of the national and gender questions in Ethiopian political discourse and practice through a self-reflexive approach.
Luladey Tadesse Worku discussed the influence of personal narratives on inter-generational discourse in her presentation “Unveiling a Revolution: The Role of Personal Narratives in Shaping Generational Discourse.” She looks at the ways in which women revolutionaries’ critical reflections can help depolarize mainstream narratives.
At The Africa Institute (GSU), we are committed to advancing scholarly research and fostering critical dialogue in African and African diaspora studies. Our faculty and fellows contribute to this mission through rigorous postgraduate programs and impactful research endeavors.
On August 31, 2024, the African Studies Association United Kingdom (ASAUK) conference at Oxford Brookes University hosted a panel titled “Imagining Otherwise: Re-memorying the February 1974 Ethiopian Revolution.” The session was co-organized by Surafel Wondimu Abebe, Assistant Professor of Performance Studies and Theory at The Africa Institute (GSU), Sharjah, and Semeneh Ayalew Asfaw, Fatema Mernissi Postdoctoral Fellow at The Africa Institute (GSU), Sharjah.
On August 31, 2024, the African Studies Association United Kingdom (ASAUK) conference at Oxford Brookes University hosted a panel titled “Imagining Otherwise: Re-memorying the February 1974 Ethiopian Revolution.” The session was co-organized by Surafel Wondimu Abebe, Assistant Professor of Performance Studies and Theory at The Africa Institute (GSU), Sharjah, and Semeneh Ayalew Asfaw, Fatema Mernissi Postdoctoral Fellow at The Africa Institute (GSU), Sharjah.
The panel was conducted in a hybrid format, with Professors Abebe and Asfaw participating in person, while Professors Martha Kuwee Kumsa from Wilfrid Laurier University, Canada and Luladey Tadesse Worku from Qatar University contributed remotely. The online participation was facilitated by Sataan Al Hassan, Director of Administration and Operations at The Africa Institute (GSU), Sharjah, with technical support provided by Behailu Shiferaw, a PhD student at Northwestern University.
The panel’s conceptual framework aimed to foster a nuanced understanding of the 1974 Ethiopian Revolution by engaging with the Ethiopian past from a present-day perspective. The discussion focused on the participation of non-elite groups in the revolution, exploring how political imaginaries were articulated and disarticulated then, and their connections to contemporary issues. This approach sought to complicate mainstream representations of the past and gain insight into the structural transformations and their impact on everyday life.
Surafel Wondimu Abebe presented on the role of theatre in revising historical narratives through his paper, “Staging the Trans/National-Popular: Decolonizing the Eurocentric Elitism through Theatre.” His work explored how theatre can challenge entrenched Eurocentric perspectives on the revolution.
Semeneh Ayalew Asfaw delivered a paper titled “1974: Ethnographies of Protest in Addis,” which examined the socio-cultural aspects of protest in Addis Ababa during the revolution, emphasizing the importance of popular histories in understanding political dynamics.
Martha Kuwee Kumsa presented “Genealogy of the 1974 Popular Revolution in Ethiopia: Critical Autoethnographic Reflections of a Recovering Old Revolutionary,” offering personal insights into the revolution’s impact by exploring the silencing of the national and gender questions in Ethiopian political discourse and practice through a self-reflexive approach.
Luladey Tadesse Worku discussed the influence of personal narratives on inter-generational discourse in her presentation “Unveiling a Revolution: The Role of Personal Narratives in Shaping Generational Discourse.” She looks at the ways in which women revolutionaries’ critical reflections can help depolarize mainstream narratives.
At The Africa Institute (GSU), we are committed to advancing scholarly research and fostering critical dialogue in African and African diaspora studies. Our faculty and fellows contribute to this mission through rigorous postgraduate programs and impactful research endeavors.
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