Description
Book SynopsisThe idea of public sociology, as introduced by Michael Burawoy, was inspired by the sociological practice in South Africa known as ‘critical engagement’. This volume explores the evolution of critical engagement before and after Burawoy’s visit to South Africa in the 1990s and offers a Southern critique of his model of public sociology. Involving four generations of researchers from the Global South, the authors provide a multifaceted exploration of the formation of new knowledge through research practices of co-production. Tracing the historical development of ‘critical engagement’ from a Global South perspective, the book deftly weaves a bridge between the debates on public sociology and decolonial frameworks.
Table of Contents1. Critical Engagement in South Africa and the Global South: An Introduction - Andries Bezuidenhout, Sonwabile Mnwana and Karl von Holdt 2. Critical Engagement and SWOP’s Changing Research Tradition - Andries Bezuidenhout and Karl von Holdt 3. Choosing Sides: The Promise and Pitfalls of a Critically Engaged Sociology in Apartheid South Africa - Edward Webster 4. The Decline of Labour Studies and the Democratic Transition - Sakhela Buhlungu 5. From ‘Critical Engagement’ to ‘Public Sociology’ and Back: A Critique from the South - Karl von Holdt 6. The Antinomies and Opportunities of Critical Engagement in South Africa’s Rural Mining Frontier - Sonwabile Mnwana 7. Sociological Engagement with the Struggle for a Just Transition in South Africa - Jacklyn Cock 8. Feminist Participatory Action Research in African Sex Work Studies - Ntokozo Yingwana 9. Participatory Action Research for Food Justice in Johannesburg: Seeking a More Immediate Impact for Engaged Research - Brittany Kesselman 10. Dilemmas and Issues Confronting Socially Engaged Research within Universities - Aninka Claassens and Nokwanda Sihlali 11. Experiences of Meetings and Cooperation between Academics and Unions: The Work Studies Group from the South (GETSUR) - Dasten Julián Vejar 12. Critically Engaging Public Sociology in Turkey and 'Sociology across the South' - Ercüment Çelik 13. Reflections on Critical Engagement - Michael Burawoy 14 Conclusion: Towards a Southern Sociology - Karl von Holdt
