The co-editors in chief of Hypatia are delighted to publicly launch our “Feminism in Translation” initiative with the publication of our first Feminism in Translation Feature Article. This translation by Pedro Monque of Rita Laura Segato's “Género y Colonialidad: del Patriarcado Comunitario de Baja Intensidad al Patriarcado Colonial Moderno de Alta Intensidad,” (Reference Segato and Monque2021) makes this groundbreaking essay by a prominent scholar of decolonial feminist philosophy in Latin America widely available to English-speaking scholars for the first time. We anticipate that it will appear on reading lists for courses in decolonial feminist thought and change the discussion of decolonial feminism in contexts where it has not previously been available.
One of the key innovations this editorial team initiated when we applied to assume responsibility for editing Hypatia was a “Feminism in Translation” feature. It was clear to us that, though works written in English that gain some traction with a significant audience are often translated into other languages, it is much less common for translations to go the other way. This means that those who work primarily in English (or for whom English is the language of communication across geographical regions) remain unaware of significant developments in feminist theory that take place in other languages. Developments in feminist thought, and the thinkers who are doing that work, may be unknown in language contexts other than their own. Alternative genealogies of works and their reception histories may be unknown outside of the context in which they emerge, especially if they develop counterhegemonic perspectives.
The editorial team believes that well-established feminist organizations and institutions, like Hypatia, must answer the call of our times. History calls on us to engage in projects of understanding and dismantling colonial legacies, including legacies of anti-black racism, colonial violence (including sexual and gender violence), and the established infrastructures that keep power and privilege moving through familiar channels. Our “Feminism in Translation” initiative is only one tiny step in that direction, but it is a significant step.
Hypatia invites translators of non-English-language published works in feminist thought that have had a significant impact in their home language, and stand to have a broader impact if published in English, to submit a Feminism in Translation Feature Article proposal to Hypatia. Please submit your translation proposal electronically through the Cambridge University Press online submission and review system ScholarOne (https://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/hypa). You may also consult the Checklist for Translators (http://hypatiaphilosophy.org/for-contributors/submission-guidelines/). Generally, we are seeking single articles that will be published in regular issues of the journal.
