ABSTRACT
In this chapter I attempt to do two things: (1) theorize what I call ‘decolonial psychoanalysis,’ and (2) apply my theory to an analysis of Islamophobia. I start by problematizing the Euro-American call for an ‘Islamic reformation’ à la the Protestant Reformation. I do so by looking at the modern history of Islam from the perspective of border thinkers. Then I briefly tackle the problem of the one (universal) and the many (particulars) before thinking about the dialectical relationship between psychoanalysis and Islam. I follow by arguing for a radical psychoanalysis and an Islamic humanism. After that, I perform a Lacanian discourse critique of political Islam. Next, I use Jacques Lacan’s theory of the five discourses to challenge the hegemonic discourses of counterterrorism and Islamophobia. I proceed to sketch the Discourse of the Analyst, in particular, as a revolutionary model for radical psychoanalysis and Islamic humanism, while drawing on transmodern/decolonial tools such as delinking and secular criticism. I end the chapter with a critique of Slavoj Žižek’s under-theorization of Islamophobia in order to show how decolonial psychoanalysis improves upon Lacanian social theory with its emphasis on liberation.
