"I am Coloured": The Memoir as a Decolonial Methodology

Abstract

This paper explores the shift from a “definitive” to a “descriptive” approach in the context of the coloured identity narrative. It reflects on the challenges of critiquing and redefining coloured culture and identity while still using language that reinforces existing tropes. The author argues for a move towards the descriptive, which allows for a decolonial perspective and selfarticulation. The text discusses the use of autoethnography and the creation of a production called (Un)becoming, where personal narratives were explored. It also suggests that published memoirs, such as Sorry, Not Sorry, Because I Couldn’t Kill You, and Ougat, contribute to disrupting normative cultural constraints and offer a decolonizing perspective.