This book consists of three interrelated historiographical essays on the subject of decolonization. The first essay deals with decolonization in education, the second essay focuses on decolonization in medicine, and the third essay discusses decolonization in religion. The book is the product of a prospectus from a professor who directed a study by the author in graduate school; the professor wanted to address retrieval of tradition, cultural survivals, and identity formation. The professor did not require a full-length book to satisfy the requirements, but the author's analysis of the various sources consulted took her in that direction. The book was originally written in 2008. Although the prospectus was a starting point, the author has dealt mainly with what decolonization has meant for the sense of reality among Western and indigenous peoples, especially on the African continent, in light of deconstruction and post-modern theory. The book includes a discussion of the impact of "fakery," as mentioned in the prospectus, in perpetuating a colonial God, but this has not been the overall thesis. Likewise, the points about Australia that are included in the book are for comparative purposes as directed by the prospectus. Some of the discussion in the book addresses recent or ongoing events, but the author has tried to note change over time where possible. Readers are advised that the discussion of the various arguments and points of views from scholars included within the book does not necessarily constitute endorsement and/or support on the part of the author of the positions that these scholars have made.
About the Author: Victoria Gray and her husband Randy reside in Memphis, Tennessee. They are the proud parents of two daughters, who both attend college at Howard University with plans to enter law school upon graduation; the older daughter also represented her institution as Miss Howard University 2016-2017 and was recently accepted to Georgetown University Law Center. Victoria Gray teaches history full time at Southwest Tennessee Community College, where she has been employed for nearly 18 years. She is a native of Mississippi and graduate of the University of Mississippi, where she earned her B.A. and M.A. degrees in history. She is a doctoral candidate at the University of Memphis and plans to defend her dissertation in 2017. Gray is a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated. Physically active and a lover of the outdoors, she was part of the track team in high school and still enjoys running 5K races. The author is a licensed evangelist and earned a certificate for completing a nine month course at Downline Institute in 2016. She is an active member of Sweet Communion Ministries, where she works with the intercessory prayer team and serves as one of the teachers for adult Sunday school classes. She taught Vacation Bible School (adult class) in 2015 and 2016. The author has written several other books, most of which are unpublished, along with a series of more than 100 detailed outlines for the history classes that she teaches. She recently published two books (PRAYER POWER and POETIC PRAISES) as part of her "Victorious Praise" series on Biblical topics, but Decolonizing God is one of her "Gray Matters" books on subjects in the discipline of history. The author's current books are available online at Amazon through VICTORY IN PRAISE Publications.