Eliza Steinbock, Sophie Withaeckx and Pieter du Plessis receive funding from NWO PhD in the Humanities
PhD supervisors Eliza Steinbock and Sophie Withaeckx and their PhD candidate Pieter du Plessis have received funding from the NWO PhD in the Humanities scheme for the research project titled ‘Belonging and Unbelonging in Amsterdam’s Het Zuid-Afrikahuis: A Decolonial Study of Dutch Whiteness in Relation to Afrikaner Whiteness’.
While Eliza Steinbock is the applicant for the project and will be supervising it with Sophie and also Margriet van der Waal (Groningen and Amsterdam Universities), Pieter du Plessis will carry out the research into the relation between Dutch whiteness and other forms of whiteness.
About the project
Dutch cultural heritage institutions have faced calls for decolonisation in recent years. Issues of belonging in these institutions and how they are informed by Dutch whiteness have come to be interrogated. Dutch whiteness is mainly understood in relation to racialised and colonised subjectivities, yet, how Dutch whiteness has been constructed in relation to other forms of whiteness still requires exploration.
Through decolonial theory, a critical biography of “Het Zuid-Afrikahuis”, a cultural and knowledge centre about South Africa, will be produced, illustrating how Dutch whiteness is informed relationally by Afrikaner whiteness. This will be examined through ethnographic and archival research.
Also read
-
Professional growth the European way
Many former students have fond memories of time spent abroad during their degree, whether they spent a semester in Italy or went to Latvia for an internship. Stays abroad are possible for university staff as well, for example, as part of YUFE Staff Development Programmes.
-
Protests at Maastricht University 2025 - Update 1
This morning, pro-Palestinian demonstrators began a protest at the Faculty of Law. In doing so, they blocked the entrances to the faculty building. UM is speaking with the protesters. The UM approach is clear: we give space to demonstrations where we can, and at the same time we want to safeguard...
-
Limburg Immersive Technologies (LIT) network officially launched, connecting academia, industry, and society to shape the future of XR in the Euregion
Maastricht University and Zuyd University of Applied Sciences officially unveiled the Limburg Immersive Technologies (LIT) Network on 6 May 2025 at the Teaching Hotel Château Bethlehem in Maastricht. The launch gathered researchers, educators, innovators, industry leaders, students, and policymakers...
