Temporal Sovereignty – Hanna Inoue

Temporal sovereignty is explored in Mark Rifkin’s Beyond Settler Time as the exercise of political independence, authority, and control over time, especially in the context of Native American and colonial relations. This concept encompasses the power to shape and regulate temporal patterns, rhythms, and structures beyond the dominantsettler time formation (settler time represents the colonization of time). Naturally, the hegemonic temporal formation inhibits temporal multiplicity and acts as a constraint on indigenous political independence, denying indigenous time orientations. As such, temporal sovereignty suggests that individuals, institutions, and governing bodies who politically regulate timekeeping can influence how time is experienced, organized, and valued in a given domain, privileging certain temporalities over others. In extending this concept, the power to regulate time also reaches separate dimensions of life such as the arrangements of daily life, cultural practices, collective memory, historical narratives, and interpretations of the past, present, and future. Those who wield power influence the way past events are remembered, interpreted, and integrated into the collective consciousness. In addition, the way in which the future is interpreted and envisioned leads to the tangible structuring of the present (historical progress from the perspective of colonial settlers seeks to maintain and uphold colonial structures). These components can shape a society’s identity, objectives, and understanding of its history. Ultimately, temporal sovereignty reveals that time is not merely a neutral and objective framework but is subject to influence, control, and manipulation by those in authority, highlighting the complex interplay between sovereignty and the nature of time.