Memories of (un)Freire literacy policies in Southern Africa from the 1970s on: Telling the (hi)story through life histories and photography of (dis)empowerment in Mozambique

Abstract

This article draws on the intersection of oral history and photography to elaborate on the memories of the nation construction process in Mozambique through the (hi)story of the Frelimo School of Bagamoyo, in Tanzania (1970-1975). Bagamoyo is both a place of memory and presence in the national and regional (hi)stories. The article is underpinned by the notion of (dis)empowerment related with (Un)Freire’s critical pedagogy used in and out of Bagamoyo, looking at (i) teachers’ memories located within their photographs of Bagamoyo and documents of the Mozambican literacy policies, (ii) the anthropologist interpretation of the (hi)stories shared from teachers’ multi-situated locations.