Call for special issue: “Southern philosophy(ies): between Africa and Latin America”

Call for special issue: Trans/Form/Ação: Philosophy Journal of Unesp

(publication: second quarter of 2021)

 “Southern philosophy(ies): between Africa and Latin America”

 DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSION: AUGUST 15, 2020

             The studies of social movements and protests in the Global South, and particularly in Africa and Latin America, have multiplied over the past few years due, mainly, to their role, which led to significant changes, both in terms of getting new rights or in the political arena. However, what prevailed was an epistemological approach based on empirical research, still lacking, in most cases, a deeper reflection on the ontological elements of African and Latin American civil society as a whole. Concerns about its nature, its aims, what does it act for, what kind of ethical and political principles does it propose, what are its limits and challenges are just some questions that a philosophical reflection should bring up, going beyond the merely descriptive study of it.

            In a constant dialogue with other disciplines in the social sciences, this issue of the Trans/Form/Ação journal encourages the submission of articles on civil society and social movements in the Global South, with special reference to African and Latin American cases, including in the dialogue that these managed to establish, in consideration of the many elements common to the two geographical areas. It will be interesting to understand the dialectical and dialogical elements between spaces of originality of philosophies and ways of life centered in epistemological traditions typical of African culture, such as Ubuntu, the Black Reason or traditional or communitarian practices, as well as in the Latin American post-colonial tradition, which flowed into several currents of thought, still today. Preferably, the articles should bring reflections centered on post-colonial philosophical approaches, related to the African continent as well as to the diaspora and similar challenges faced by Latin American countries, capable of proposing models of thought and existence that start from the radical need for a change of the current paradigm, to which civil society can contribute greatly.

            Approximately fifteen articles will be classified, proportionally distributed around three major axes: Ethics, Political Philosophy, and Epistemology. Manuscripts from researchers/doctors, preferably native or from institutions in the Southern Hemisphere will be accepted. The themes, philosophical or of philosophical interest, being historiographical, should be based, in essence, on thinkers from this part of the planet.

            The texts must follow the rules for publication of the journal, exposed in: https://revistas.marilia.unesp.br/index.php/transformacao/Normas. In particular, they must comply with the standard template, which can be downloaded at: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1I2POIPaDvJNJxpQonvgc1PZ9mCJ0CrcD/view.

            When submitting the article on the journal's page, it must be named as follows: SOUTHERN PHILOSOPHIES, NAME OF THE SUBMITTED TEXT.

            As has been happening since this year, the manuscripts approved in the double-blind evaluation will be commented on by the referees, with the consent of those involved.

            We hope that this special volume can bring contributions to political, ethical and epistemological thinking, expanding knowledge on issues relevant to the hemisphere and enabling the strengthening of a southern philosophy.