LAT Does Not Exist: Oral Histories of Development-Induced Displacement in India by Sam Tranum and Lois Kapila, (eds.)

Abstract

For me, as the Editor-in-Chief and Founder of the Journal of Internal Displacement, every book review has a tale, actually a rewarding story of learning, appreciation and fight for social justice and equality for forcibly displaced persons. Whilst I have been privileged in assisting a colleague and friend with proofreading manuscripts on displacement in Asia, in actuality, this is my first attempt to review a complete finished product on displacement in India. It was 13 May 2014, exactly a month to my departure from Liberia having spent 6 months collecting field data for my PhD. Apparently, it was also a month to the publication of Lat Does Not Exist, when Sam Tranum, the first author, pre-empted the need to solicit JID’s review of the upcoming publication. I initially hesitated having assessed being overwhelmed with research work in Liberia alongside a prior commitment to review University of Cambridge Press’ Refugee Repatriation: Justice, Responsibility and Redress by Megan Bradley. Inevitably, the learning experience gained from the exercise of critically evaluating a fellow advocate work on a topic that is of great interest is invaluable. So does the review of Lat does not exist...