Black History in Occupied Territory: On the Entanglements of Slavery and Settler Colonialism

Recent work in black and indigenous studies has made claims to exceptionalism that leave the two fields at an impasse. This article argues that since the nineteenth century, US colonial projects have relied upon a simultaneous logic of anti-blackness and settlement. It further argues that social movements have been able to capitalize on radical forms of solidarity by suspending claims to exceptionalism so pervasive in scholarship. It concludes with a sketch of black-Palestinian solidarity activism, paying particular attention to how the anti-blackness at work in the Israeli settler project makes blackness resonate in Palestine and occupation resonate among black Americans.