How Racism Leads to Epistemicide or Murder of Knowledge? A Case Study of Tangible and Cultural Heritage of the Nile Valley in Sudan

Abstract

In this paper, we introduce epistemicide as an emerging theoretical framework for critical library and information studies alongside the well-known ones extensively covered in the literature of our field. Definitions of epistemicide and an aggregate of related concepts drawn from recent research are reviewed and examined through the lens of the ethics of information and knowl­edge organization (KO). A detailed historical background about Nubia and Kushite kingdoms along the river Nile is chosen as a case study. It focuses on the early conditions that led to racism, marginalization, and discrimination of the civilization of the Nile Valley in Sudan and its tangible cultural heritage. Facts are drawn from a vast literature review, documentary films, checked in knowl­edge organization systems (KOS, indexing languages and classifications) and museums. The paper concludes with an appeal to information scholars and professionals to address epistemicide as an ethical and crucial issue for information professionals responsible for the credibility and accuracy of the information they handle in every field of knowl­edge.