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Stephan Sanders Next Guest of the Director at NIAS

Stephan Sanders

Guest of the Director

What Happened to the Colour 'Brown'?

Research Question

How come that the word ‘brown’ or ‘brown-skinned’ disappeared in the debate on racism? Is the current dichotomy ‘white/black’ being used a useful tool for fair change?

Project Description

Now and in the past there have been many writers and journalists who have been ‘brown-skinned’ or ‘mixed’. They are ‘the masters of words’ and because of their sensibility for language, they are the ones I will profile: From the American writer Albert Murray to the American writer currently living in Paris, Thomas Chatterton Williams and Dutch rap artist and writer ‘Willem’ – all have and had ideas about how they themselves wanted to be named. To break the dichotomy of black and white, I will show through these writers how a broader field can be opened.

Selected Publications