Neither dominant nor dominated. The decolonial federalism of Albert Camus

• Published in: History of European ideas Vol. 49; no. 8; pp. 1359 - 1374
• Main Author: Visone, Tommaso
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford Routledge 17-11-2023; Taylor & Francis Ltd
• Subjects: Algeria; Camus; colonialism; decolonial federalism; Decolonization; Federalism; Imperialism; Nationalism
• ISSN: 0191-6599; 1873-541X
• DOI: 10.1080/01916599.2023.2238269

Albert Camus has been at the centre of a long and bitter controversy for his positions on the Algerian war. Accused of being a colonialist, marked by Eurocentrism and/or a de facto supporter of imperialism, he in fact joined the struggle for decolonization from his earliest steps in politics, untethering it, however, from any nationalist perspective. This essay delineates the formation of Camusian position on the Algerian crisis, its turning points and the path followed in this regard from the late 1930s to the late 1950s, seeking to reveal his perspective of a decolonial federalism that would simultaneously transform Europe and Africa in order to establish a political community in which there would be neither dominant nor dominated.