Trans-Continental Collaboration
摘要
This chapter presents the decolonizing methodology undertaken by two scholars—an Aboriginal/Blakfella from Australia and a Jamaican-American from North America—who ground their qualitative approaches in Aboriginal epistemologies and Maroon African-centered cosmologies. Together they interrogate how the legacies of language, culture, politics, and spirituality within the Black Diaspora provide pathways for healing the trauma that continues to engulf both Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples globally, particularly those caught in the throes of neo-colonization. The research demonstrates how dominant empirical traditions have historically dismissed the efficacy of Indigenous knowledge, thereby minimizing both the pain produced by neo-colonialism and the spiritual resources of lineage that remain crucial sources of strength. The chapter deconstructs their engaged research process as an experiential pedagogy designed to decolonize Western methodology and honor the cultural capital of heritage that has withstood centuries of disruption, yet continues to sustain the empowerment of Black, Aboriginal, and Indigenous peoples worldwide. Their collaboration reveals the empowering outcome of trans-continental partnership, strengthening their scholarly work and surfacing epistemologies of freedom that nurture the journey toward a more inclusive and sustained world. By emphasizing Africa’s global reach, the authors link places, times, and histories that are rarely considered together, demonstrating the nonlinear interweaving of personal and professional stories shaped by colonization across continents and rooted in the ongoing oppression of Black communities across the globe. The findings underscore how decolonized research methodologies disrupt hegemonic systems and affirm the legitimacy of creating a borderless, healing world.