Re-imagining feminist thought from the prism of decoloniality: towards a decolonial relational feminism

Abstract

Feminist thought, in its essence, advances the emancipation of women from oppressive systems of power while fostering gender equality. However, there is a dominant Western-centrism embedded in it, and like most Western-centric knowledge frameworks, there is a disconnect between the presupposition of universality and the location of its knowledge production. By asking, how can we reimagine feminist thought from the prism of decoloniality? This paper uses decoloniality to recentre Global South voices in feminist thought. It makes use of a qualitative methodology, interview findings, and a critical analytical framework as its method of inquiry. It uses relational feminism to demonstrate the Western-centrism in feminist thought. By engaging in a decolonial reimagining of traditional relational feminism to enrich its relevance for Global South theorising, this paper develops a decolonial relational feminist theory that draws on perspectives of women from the Global South to re-centre their voices in feminist thought.