Gail Presbey

The Status of Oral Traditions in the History of Philosophy: Methodological Considerations

7.-9. September 2023, Universität Hildesheim

Gail Presbey

Alice Lakwena as Peace Philosopher:

Her Criticisms of War and Greed

Alice Lakwena (or Alice Auma, the woman who is the spirit medium for the spirit, Lakwena), is widely known as a controversial prophetess who led insurgents against Ugandan President Yoweri Musuveni's army. She is also known for founding a syncretic church that attracted many ardent followers. But she has not yet been studied as a philosopher. Having had the opportunity to interview Alice Lakwena during her time at Dadaab refugee camp, I would like to argue that she saw herself as a philosopher of peace as well as a prophetess and healer. She is a critic of war and greed, and she is a moralist who writes many rules for her religious followers. In an unhurried context, she shared the narrative of her life story from her own perspective, that is quite different from the way she is covered in the news. As Fred Allison explains, people change their life narrations over time and in response to audiences. Alesandro Portelli explains that even a careful narrator can give many very different accounts of the same event, and all interviews are variable and partial by their very nature. I therefore share my interview with her not as the definitive account of what really happened, but rather, a detailed account that will share insights of how Alice made meaning of her own life and her own decisions. Anderson argues that emotions help provide meaning to our life experiences, and so a focus only on actions, events, and things will not tell the whole story of what has happened and why. From Alice's perspective, her actions were motivated by a desire for peace, and I will argue that she can't be fully understood as a philosophical thinker and historical actor without taking her own interpretation of events into account.

Gail Presbey teaches peace and social justice, ethics, African philosophy and culture, and other courses related to social and political philosophy at the University of Detroit Mercy. Presbey's interests are in cross-cultural and feminist explorations in philosophy and the philosophy of non-violence. Presbey has authored many journal articles and book chapters. She has edited an introductory philosophy text, The Philosophical Quest: A Cross Cultural Reader (1995, 2000). She is first editor of Thought and Practice in African Philosophy (2002), and editor of Philosophical Perspectives on the 'War on Terrorism' (2007). Presbey holds a Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy from University of Detroit, a Master of Arts in History with a concentration in world history from Wayne State University, and Master of Arts in Philosophy and doctorate in Philosophy from Fordham University. From 1998 to 2000 she held a two-year J. William Fulbright Senior Scholar position at the University of Nairobi, Kenya, during which she did research on sage philosophy. In 2005, she had a six-month research Fulbright grant, hosted by World Peace Center at MIT, Pune, India, where she studied Gandhian nonviolence. Presbey received Detroit Mercy's Faculty Achievement Award in 2003 and the Mission Leadership Award in 2006. She received the Purple Ribbon Award for Peace from Pax Christi Michigan in 2018. She joined the University in 2000.