New Books Network Chelsi West Ohueri, "Encountering Race in Albania: An Ethnography of the Communist Afterlife" (Cornell UP, 2025)
Sep 11, 2025
Chelsi West Ohueri, Assistant Professor at UT Austin, dives into the complex interplay of race in Albania. She discusses how racial dynamics are shaped by historical contexts, highlighting the concept of 'peripheral whiteness.' Her ethnographic insights reveal how hospitality in Albanian society both reflects and challenges racial perceptions. The conversation also touches on the marginalization of communities like the Roma and Egyptians, offering a nuanced understanding of identity politics in the region's post-communist landscape.
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Fieldwork Pivoted By Everyday Hospitality
- Chelsi West Ohueri first went to Albania for an archaeology project and kept being pulled into everyday social life instead of field survey work.
- Those early hospitality encounters redirected her to cultural anthropology and shaped her research path on race in Albania.
Contextualize Race Locally And Historically
- Situate race research locally and historically rather than importing U.S.-centric frames.
- Treat race as globally formed but shaped by local histories and institutions.
Post-Racial Claims Rooted In European Histories
- West Ohueri argues European histories (Nazism, communism) shape claims of 'post-racial' and complicate acknowledging racism in Europe.
- Public anti-racist rhetoric under socialism often masked persistent racial hierarchies and exclusions.
