BIRMM, WeDecolonize and ’Nuff Said invite you to an artist talk with Ursula Rucker on 4 October at 17:30 at the WeDecolonize Library.

Under the title “Who Gets to Make Knowledge? Epistemic Justice and the Limits of Decolonising Academia”, the talk will start from Ursula Rucker’s own experiences with academia: a space where her work, knowledge and artistic practice are often welcomed and used, while she is not always recognised as a legitimate knowledge producer within the structures that validate knowledge.

From this personal experience, the conversation will open up a broader reflection on epistemic justice. Who is recognised as a knower? Whose knowledge is considered legitimate? And who benefits from the knowledge that is produced? The talk will critically explore the limits of decolonising academia, especially when academic institutions invite artists, activists and other knowledge producers into their spaces without necessarily transforming the structures of recognition, reciprocity and power that shape those spaces.

Moving from the personal to the structural, the event asks what it would take to build academic spaces grounded in genuine epistemic justice, meaningful decolonisation and reciprocal relationships. The artist talk will be followed by a reflection from Yasmine Kaied and a Q&A with the audience.

About Ursula Rucker

Ursula Rucker is an American poet, spoken word artist, singer and activist from Philadelphia. For nearly three decades, she has been one of the most influential voices at the intersection of poetry, jazz, soul, hip hop and electronic music. Her powerful performances address themes such as identity, social justice, love and community.

About the Artist Talks

Starting this academic year, ‘Nuff Said, in collaboration with WeDecolonize and BIRMM at VUB, will organise a free Artist Talk four times a year. Each event will feature an international artist from the worlds of comedy, spoken word or music. Drawing on their personal and professional experiences, the guests bring different ways of seeing, feeling and understanding into the university. In doing so, the Artist Talks create space for epistemic justice: for knowledge rooted in lived experience, artistic practice and social engagement, and for new perspectives on issues such as migration, polarisation, racism and (international) conflicts. Each Artist Talk will be followed by a conversation with a VUB researcher and an extended Q&A with the audience. We deliberately make time for this exchange, because valuable knowledge also emerges through dialogue. The Artist Talks are informal and accessible to everyone: students, staff and people from civil society are all welcome.

Practical information