Views from Beyond the West Conference
October 14-15, 2013
By Payal Banerjee
Payal Banerjee presented her work at a two-day conference held at The New School for
Public Engagement, New York City, from 14-15 October 2013. A core group of faculty
members from the US, India, Brazil, Morocco, Colombia, and South Africa participated to
discuss curricular issues in teaching social and political theory from a non-western
perspective. Banerjee’s paper, “International Migration and Borders,” addressed
pedagogical concerns and strategies relevant to the field of Migration Studies. The
conference concluded with a workshop for all participants where the group conceptualized
the blueprint for an interdisciplinary book that aims to center alternative pedagogical
strategies and theoretical perspectives from the Global South. At Smith, Banerjee engaged
her Theories of Society (SOC 250) course with the conference’s core ideas, presentations,
and papers throughout the semester (Fall 2013). Students were particularly excited to see
a resonance between the Theories of Society class and the conference and to learn about
how a set of theoretical questions was shaping the evolution of the Global South oriented
book on teaching social and political theory.