Global historical materialism and decoloniality

This debate piece offers a global historical materialist critique of decolonial theory, engaging Walter Mignolo’s work. It argues that decolonial literature, by creating abstract universals like modernity/coloniality, disarticulates theory from specific social formations and historical contexts. The author proposes eight methodological questions to demystify decolonial literature and reintegrate theory into history. Using Mignolo’s writings, the paper demonstrates how decolonial thinking can lead to political detachment and ineffective transformative strategies. The critique emphasises grounding theory in concrete social formations to render history legible and serve national liberation movements. By contrasting decolonial abstractions with historical examples from anti-colonial struggles on and beyond the African continent, it highlights decolonial thought’s limitations in addressing capitalism as a world system. It advocates for a global historical materialist analysis that integrates capitalism’s interconnected nature and reintroduces the social formation as a unit of analysis for understanding social relations.