One of the major imperial conditions is to make all of us believe that it is irreversible, that whatever was acquired by or through imperial violence is irreversible. And unlearning imperialism is saying 'not only is it reversible, it is reversible 500 years backward.' And not being afraid of words like 'backward,' not being afraid of thinking that we can really reverse, and claim repair and reparations for the damage produced in the last 500 years.

Theorist Ariella Aïsha Azoulay explores the ways imperialist logic pervades our thinking about other people, objects, nature and time itself, and calls of a radical unlearning of imperialism to approach, and repair, a world damaged by 500 years of violence, theft and exploitation.

Ariella is author of Potential History: Unlearning Imperialism from Verso.