Denial that African philosophy exists persists as a subtle modern prejudice

Evidence

The response Tempels gave to European scholars remains relevant today. I am not aware of any philosopher who claims, as the Enlightenment philosophers posited, that Africans have no reason and cannot think creatively. That debate is certainly behind us, and it is thanks to the publication of Bantu Philosophy. Today we are talking about other things, not whether the ‘man’ is in the Black people or not. That there are no philosophers who endorse that view should not be construed to mean that condescending attitudes towards Africans and their culture no longer exist. Magesa (2010, pp. 45–50) has argued that prejudices shown by European philosophers and missionaries still exist today in real and subtle ways. Such prejudices against African people and culture are expressed by those who argue that African philosophy does not exist or that African Religions are not religions and, therefore, they cannot be involved in dialogues with the other major religions. Similarly, those who argue for the abolition of certain African practices on the ground that they are outdated and are no longer relevant to modern or post-modern needs of Africans also express prejudices against Africans and their culture. — Frans Dokman, Beyond Bantu Philosophy_…, 149

Categorization

• DEFINE: Clarifies what counts as residual prejudice: denying the existence of African philosophy, refusing dialogue with African religions, and dismissing African practices as outdated.