In Redefining the Capital(s): Fanon and Monopolised Eurocentric Mathematics Versus the Collective Power of Mathematics in the Margins

This paper judges Eurocentric mathematics and its role in sustaining colonial inequalities. Drawing on Fanon’s work and a redefined concept of capital, we highlight the taken-away power (and knowledge) within margins, such as Indigenous communities, which influences the maintenance or diminution of the capital of taken-for-granted social structures. We present two examples. The first highlights an initiative that is reclaiming Indigenous mathematical knowledge by actively resisting colonization. The second illustrates the dangers of seemingly well-intentioned initiatives that inadvertently reinforce knowledge colonization, despite translating workbooks into Indigenous languages. We conclude by emphasizing the need to move beyond simply including knowledge from the margins in the existing Eurocentric framework, and to instead recognize and build on the transformative power of those margins to reshape and redefine the very nature of capital, power and knowledge.