Reviews Peter Muhlhausler's book "Linguistic Ecology: Language Change and Linguistic Imperialism in the Pacific Region." Discusses the linguistic diversity of the Pacific, the linguistic impact of colonialism in the Pacific, and the role of linguists in the evolving linguistic situation in the Pacific. (Author/VWL)

Reviews Robert Phillipson's "Linguistic Imperialism," a book about the imposition of English on former colonies of Great Britain. Notes that the book taps into the guilt felt by the rich North about the poor South and that the role of language in an imperial enterprise is important. (22 references) (Author/CK)

Two contemporary films, "Braveheart" and "Rob Roy," depict Scottish ethnicity from a rather narrow perspective. The positions that are sentimentally admired when attributed to white natives of Scotland are horrifying when expressed by contemporary peoples of color. These films raise interesting questions about the true nature…

Reviews four books that explain modern schooling's irrelevance for many indigenous communities and that represent indigenous knowledge practices with respect: "What Is Indigenous Knowledge? Voices from the Academy"; "Escaping Education: Living as Learning within Grassroots Cultures"; "Intercultural Education and Literacy: An Ethnographic Study of…

In his 1928 play, the Harlem Renaissance writer Leslie Pickney Hill portrays Toussaint L'Ouverture, the leader of the Haitian slave rebellion, with historical accuracy. Hill's presentation was aimed at rehabilitating black pride, "A worthy literature reared upon authentic records of achievement is the present spiritual need of the race."…

Reviews essays by Raymond Williams, which explain how, within the context of a 150-year literary history, rural stereotypes have been constructed and imbedded within a collective consciousness by a form of cultural colonization. Suggests that Williams' insights can help rural education researchers think outside the conventional wisdom that…

Expatriate characters in six post-independence African novels are disillusioned by the nasty weather, negative racial attitudes, declining morality, and rigid social structure they find in the Western world. Their loneliness in the West ironically becomes a source of African nationalism. (BJV)