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Oi z Crit ica|\tf COIIS CI'Of Is Res catch
C2) a particular organization of its domains of power; e.g., struc-
tural, disciplinary, hegemonic, and interpersonal" (p. 299). e see!
to understand "ow oppression is e#pressed in language and liferac$%
re&earcff, and how researchers address the iffier sectionalify of rec-
ognized systems of oppression trace'ethnicity, class, gender, and
se#ual orientation) as well as less recognized forms (language and
immigrant status). (he &ingularity of the aforementioned catego-
ries as identity mar!ers is recast "y Collins (2)))) as systems of op-
pression that intersect and need to "e interrogated and ander&tood
within four domains of power* cl) structural (an organization%s laws,
policies, and practices), (2) disciplinary (fules'"ufeaucfacics), (+) he-
gemonic (ideas and ideologies), and (,) interpersonal (li-ed e#peri-
ences of di&Cf imiffati.n). &he summarizes the domains of power this
way* " the &tfffCtff f al domain organizes oppression . . . the disciplin-
ary domain manages it. (he hegemonic domain /ustifies oppression,
and the interpersonal domain influences e-eryday li-ed e#periences
and the indi-idual consciousness that ensues" (p. 201).
2oreo-er, Collins (399), 2)))) indentifies three le-els at wor!
within the matri# of domination* personal "iography, social and cul-
tural, and systematic. e use her model to e#amine criticalfy con-
scious language and literacy reseafch pu"lished "etween 2)()() and
2))4, and to criti5ue the field as 2arcuse (3969) ad-ocated "critical
theory is, last "ut not least, critical of itself and the social forces that
ma!e up its own "asis" (p. 02). .ur criti5ue see!s to "foaden and
tr ansf orm f uture critically conscious language and litefacy research,
CHAPTER 2
A Historq of the Ideas
Unde_z'nnz-ng Critical
Consciousness
] LID not come with timeless truths.
M consciousness is not illuminated with ultimate radiances.
-7rantz 7anon 3910, p. 0
ithin the history of ideas, C*( and critical theories are part of the
progeny of critical consciousness. 8s such, they are part of human-
!ind.s response to li-ing within changing social, political, and eco-
nomic conte#ts. e "elie-e it is important to ac!nowledge ".th
the roots of and mutes to critical consciousness, as descf i"ed "riefly
in the 9ntroduction to this "oo!. 7or con-enience, we ha-e su"di-
-ided the f :ots and routes into estern ;uropean, <orth 8merican,
and Central 8merican, ac!nowledging that geographical locations
are socially constructed and temporal while ideas are fluid and un-
"ound. (he idea of roots and routes is drawn from =all (3999), who
suggests, "instead of as!ing what are people%s roots, we ought to
thin! a"out what are their routes! the different points "y which they
ha-e come to "e now; they are, in a sense, the sum of those differ"
ences." =e adds, "routes hold us in places, "ut what they don%t do
9s hold us in the same place. e need to . . ma!e sense of the con-
nections with where we thin! we are then as compared to where we
are t'ow" (np). >
e "elie-e that the f ))34 and routes to Cf ideally conscious lafl-
guage and literacy research are worthy of e#ploration. &ituating .ur
discussion this way helps us address how 7ay%s (3960) outline of a
fully de-eloped Cf ilical theory ser-es to &uppfff t fife status 5uo.
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76 A Hzstorq of the I deas "l!ldcr#u mul Cr$ tic aI Co nsc I ous fies s 77
??%e e#amine !ey concepts deri-ed from 2ar#ism found in the
wor! of generations of the 7ran!furt &chool, as well as @ramsci,
7anon, and 7rench sociologists. e also include <orth 8merican
sch.larship and research from early 8frican 8merican scholars. e
focus on the scholarship of 8frican 8mericans in part to de-8nglicize
notions of critical consciousness and theorizing. 9n addition, we dis-
cuss, al"eit "riefly, the or! of community acti-ists to demonstrate
the !nowledges produced "y those who are struggling against op-
pression "eyond the academy. 7inally, we descri"e the scholarship of
Aaulo 7reire and &tuart =all, "ecause of their popular appeal among
language and literacy scholars and educators. (his chapter is not a
comprehensi-e history or re-iew of literature, yet the ideas and con-
cepts are important for reen-isioning critically conscious language
and literacy theorizing, research, and pra#is.
WESPRN EuROPEAN ROOTS AND RouTEs
2ar#ism is generally the starting reference p.int in estern critical
social science te#ts. 9n the Bnited &tates, 2ar#ism has "een portrayed
as the great e-il "ecause of its opposition to capitalism; howe-er, it
is a much more comple# theory. (he roots of 2ar#ism are found in
the writings of 2ar# C3636-366+) and his close friend and &upport-
er, ;ngels (362)369&). (hey suggested that it is important that the
world not "ignore the indi-iduals and the world conditions which are
sources of these ideas" (8rthuf, 390), p. 09). (hey also e#tended the
notion of class oppression, rec.gnizing connections among indi-idu-
als, ideas, class, and power. 9mportantly, they maintained that an un-
derstanding of the history of social thought re5uires loo!ing closely
at social relationships, especially the way shifts in power are related to
political, economic, and social relations. 2ar# e5uated the ownership
.f pri-ate property with the wealthy ("ourgeois) and en-isioned an
economic opposite (proletariat). =e placed a great deal of emphasis on
history, particularly economic, political, and social history, as a way to
"etter understand human!ind%s e-olution in the world.
Das I nsiti tut [fir Sozialrorschffn !I nstftute ror Social Research "
(he origins of C( can "e traced 9. the ideas, thoughts, personali-
ties, and writings associated with mem"ers of (he 9frstiffrte for &o-
cial Desearch, which has "een called the 7ran!furt &chool &ince the
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early 391)4 (see iggershaus, 399,, for a comprehensi-e history).
<umerous histories denote shifts in the 7ran!furt &chool%s empha-
sis "etween the first, second, third, and fourth generations, and also
highlight changes in theoretical positioning and geographic locales.
.ur "rief o-er-iew focuses on the 7ran!furt &chool%s initial contri"u-
tions to Critical (he.ry.
(he 7ran!furt &chool was esta"lished in 392+ in 7ran!furt, @er-
many, strategically "etween orld ars 9 and 99. 9t was founded as an
opportunity for the "ree#amination of the -ery foundations of 2ar#-
ist theory, with the dual hope of e#plaining past errors and prepar-
ing for future action" Bay, 3991, p. +). (he scholars of the 7ran!furt
&chool -ariously descri"ed their wor! as social and theoretical ma-
terialism, critical theory of society, critical social theory, and critical
theory. (he Cf moni!er, according to iggershaus C 399 ,), was used
as a "camouflage la"el for 2ar#ist theory" Cp- &E- (he initial focus of
(he 9nstitute was "first and foremost to sen%e in the &tudy and e#ten-
sion of scientific 2ar#ism" (p. +4)- 9ndi-idual scholars were ad-ocates
of select 2ar#ist principles; others preferred to focus on the writings
of Fant or =egel; and still others sought to create new theories. (he
founding mem"ers of the 7ran!furt &chool-alter Gen/amin, ;r-
ich 7romm, 2a# =or!heimer, Heo Howenthal, =er"ert 2arcuse, and
(heodor iesengrund-8dorno-can "e characterized as upper-middle-
r o middle-class men of Eewish descent; howe-er, they did not em"race
theirEewish or ethnic roots, preferring t. place emphasis on social. cul-
tural, and later, poliff cal issues. .ther scholars who wor!ed at (he 9n-
stitute included 7ranz Gor!enau, =enry! @rossmann, 7riedrich Aollac!,
and Farl and Dose ittfogel, as well as doctoral students Eulian @um-
prez, Furt 2andel"aum, Aaul 2assing, and =ilde ei&s. iggerhaus
(399,) claims that it was =or!heimer%s articulation of the participants
social and theoretical consciousness that held the group together*
the common tas! was to produce a theory of society as whole, a
theory of the contemporary era, whose su"/ect would "e human "e-
ings as producers of their own historical forms of life-forms of life
which had, howe-er, "ecome alienated from them. (p. 1)
(hrough his -ision and management, =or!freimer was a"le to con-
struct a w.r!ing relationship and "ridge "etween the social-historical
approach of (he 9nstitute%s early years and hfs own interdisciplinary
approach, which said that the e-olution of man!ind through history
was dri-en not only "y the economy "ut also "y the social forces
within society.
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18 .,, C rzf ,ca!f Conscious Res e arch 09
9for!ffeimef 8dorno. and 2arcuse fled @ermany and li-ed and
wor!ed in @ene-a. Hondon, and Aaris "efore rflo-irfg to the Bnited
&tates to a-oid the <azi ta!eo-er of @ermany. hile in the Bnited
&tates they were far more aware of their ethnic roots, and steadfastly
retained their use of @er,natl in their writing as a show of support
and in tile hope of returning to a more humane @ermany (Eay, 39913.
8ccording to Aecora and 9rr "#$$%&, =or!heimer and 8dorno mo-ed
to Hos 8ngeles, California, in 39,3, where they wor!ed and colla"o-
rated with 8cermarl. Getfelffeim, arid Eanowitz, among others, pro-
ducing &trttfies i/ J Are%/ztdice. .ther pro/ects underta!en "y mem"ers of
the 7ran!furt &chool includef.f studies of womens attitudes toward
authority in the Bnited &tates studies on the influence of unemploy-
ment on authority in the family structure, and analyses of the influ-
ence of u nemploymen t . (hese act i-i ties helped reinforce C(%s f ocus
on issues of class, and also e#tended scholarship to race, ethnicity,
and ge nder. 8s 2arco &e ( 3 916) argued*
Critical theorys interest in the li"eration of man!ind "inds it to
certain ancient truths. 9n maintaining that man can "e more
than a manipula"le su"/ect in the production process of class society
Kcritical theory$ opposes not only the production of relations
that ga-e rise to "ad materialism, "ut e-ery form of producti.n that
dominates man instead of "eing dominated "y him, this idealism
underlies its materialism. (p. 34+)
Hi!ewise, Gronner (2))2) holds that 'ran(furt &ch.ol scholars fe-
en-isi.rfed 2ar#ism and ga-e way to "a new emphasis upon %con-
sciousness and the -isi.n of a radical transf.rlffatioll of society. 8
new concern with the connection "etween re-olutionary theory and
practice made itsell felt" Cp, 1), lie "elie-es that the mem"ers of the
7ran!furt &chool the.rized a connection "etween =e%el and 2ar# and
placed "consciousne ss, as well as the practical role of ideology and
reification at the forefront of theory" Cp. 63). .ne of fife greatest lega-
cies of the 7ran!furt &chool is its insistence that we 5uestion e-ery in-
stituti.n and thought that impacts our li-es. 9n doing so, we enhance
our a"ility to continually disc.-er new p.ssi"ilitfes for social )ustice*
%econcf-&eneration Critical 'heorists
&econd.generation 7ran!furt &chool scholars include .s!ar
<eget, Claus .ffe, Farl .tto-8pel, 8lfred &chmidt, and 8l"recht
ellmerL (he most influential theorist, howe-er, has "een ?ff%gen
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Nla"crrffa& C 3929-), 8dorno%s assistant and the philosopher who
sought to renew ffor!heimers interdisciplinary approach. =a"er-
mas%s scholarship has contri"uted to the critical pro/ect in numerous
areas and glo"al arenas. 8 declared 2ar#ist for (fecades, =a"ermas
seldom references his predecessors from the 7ran!furt &chool, choos-
ing instead to engage the ideas of =egel, 2ar#, and Fant, while "eing
critical of 2ar#%s economic determinism. =e also continues C(%s e-o-
lution through reconceptualizing and redefining the critical pro/ect.
(racing Mtis thin!ing helps illustrate his shift in foci. 7irst in his
inaugural lecture at 7ran!furt Bni-ersity (3914), he proclaimed that
"human interest in autonomy and responsi"ility . . . is not mere fancy.
. . hat raises us out of nature is the only thing whose nature we can
!now* language. (hrough its stfucf are, autonomy and responsi"ility
are posited for us" (5uoted in 2cCarthy, 3906 p. 2603. &econd, in his
acclaimed "oo!, (hco cf CO+ff mtnlfof Hi-e ACtiolf ! he see!s to re-create
=or!ehe iffte r%s interdisciplinary approach to social theorizing and to
esta"lish a conceptual framewor!. (hird, he posits that a new empha-
sis will arise as people de-elop more communicati-e action-people
coming together freely and agreeing
at tile le-el of the nature of social su"/ects, !nowledge that ma!es
possi"le the control of natural processes turns into !nowledge that
ma!es possi"le the control of the social life process. 9n the dimen-
sion of la"our as a process of pr.duction and appropriation. reflec-
ti-e !nowledge changes into producti-e !nowledge. (=a"ermas,
3960 p 3+4)
7inally, focusing on rationality, he claims its importance lies in "how
spea!ing and acting su"/ects ac5uire and use !nowledge" C=a"ermas,
396,, p. ll ). 9n star! contrast to the thin!ing of many of the fifst-
generation scholars, especially those under whom he studied, =a"-
errflas see!s to defend and re!indle ;nlightenment rationality- =is
pro/ect has "een, in part to e#pand Fant%s ideas. 9n doing so, he has
made his wor! "oth a testament to and a criti5ue of C(. Contempo-
rary social theorists "elie-e that =a"ermas%s theorizing has o-ercome
some of the shortfall& and criticisms of C(.
BEyf;>ND THE FMNKF IlRT SC HCfOL
8s an idea, C( also is found in the wor! of 8ntonio @farflscf
C 369 3@39+0) 7rantz 7anon (3924-3913), and 7rench sociolo6istsL
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Cramscian Inf#uence
On Cr!.II.ca((t) Conscious *esearcft
+ranfz +allon, A -lac. *es#onse to Cn.tt.cal 'heorizin/
@ramsci, an 9talian 2ar#ist, founded the 9talian Communist
Aarty in 3923. =e spo!e out against oppression from his prison cell
in 9taly (3921-39+0). hile imprisoned, he wrote +, note"oo!s that
demonstrate his understanding and application of 2ar#ist theory,
especially as applied to political and social issues in ;urope in general
and in 9taly specifically during the late 392)s-39+)4. =is 0rison 1ote-
2oo.s also drew upon his personal e#periences, struggles, and under-
standings of "eing oppressed, "oth economically and politically.
@ramsci%s ideas of hegemony ha-e distincti-e estern ;uro-
pean roots, inspired in part "y 2ar# and ;ngels%s (39,0) position*
"(he ideas of the ruling class are in e-ery epoch the ruling ideas;
i.e., the class which is the ruling material force of society is at the
same time its ruling intellectual force" (p. +9). @ramsci sought to
distance himself from 2ar#%s restricti-e economic determinism and
class struggle, and to de-elop a "roader theory that illuminates the
roles of ideology, politics, and culture in society. =is criti5ue of soci-
ety, therefore, is not rooted solely in ec.nomics, and is a much more
mallea"le tool of analysis. =e "elie-ed that the ruling classes used
institutions, including schools, to inculcate their ideology and to
presumpti-ely win the consent of the masses, or, in his w.rds, "the
fa"rication of consent." =e "elie-ed that the failure of communism
was due to its focus on capitalism, centering on its control through
-iolence and coercion. @ramsci%s "1,71& thoughts a"out hegemony
shifted o-er time, and include intellectual, moral, and political he-
gemony C7.,gas, 2)))). Hegemon has come to mean any form of
domination that implies power, although more modern ideas also
Aronose that the oppressed can effect change. =egemony is ne-er
9*rantz 7anon (392&-3913), was "orn to a mi#ed-race (8f (ic an
(amil, and hite'7rench), lower-middle-class family on the 7rench
colony of 2artini5ue. =e was profoundly affected "y the racist acts
of 7rench soldiers during their stopo-er in 2artini5ue during orld
ar 99. 7anon /oined the 7ree 7rench 7orces, was sent to 7rance,
and left the army as a decorated war hero. =e returned to 2artin-
i5ue, completing his undergraduate degree under the tutelage of a
Communist named 8ime Cesaire, and &tudied 2ar# and &artre. =is
wor! with Cesaire led him to theorize that Glac! men were a source
of la"or for hite men. 7rom studying 2ar#, he understood class
struggle, inter/ecting race and racism; and from reading &artre he
learned to point to the power of language. 7anon (3910) also cri-
ti5ued Fant, =egel, and 2ar# for their misunderstanding .f Glac!
men%s consciousness* ""lac! consciousness is immanent in its own
eyes. 9 am not a potentiality of something" (p. 3+&). =e sought to
humanize Glac! consciousness "y arguing, .Of am wholly what 9 am.
9 do not ha-e to loo! for the uni-ersal. <o pro"a"ility has any place
inside me. 2y <egro consciousness does not hold itself .ut as a lac!.
9t is. 9t is its own follower" (p. 3+4, italics in the original).
7anon e#plicitly addressed estern ;uropean colonialism and
imperialism, and the oppression foisted upon the world at the hands
of hite men* -it is in the name of the spirit, in the name of the
sAirit of estern ;urope, that ;urope has made her encroachments,
that she has /ustified her crimes and legitimized the &la-ery in which
she holds four-fifths of humanity" (7anon, 3910, p, 2&2). Gecause of
;uropean colonialism, 7anon resolutely "elie-ed that the educated
citizenrn needed crl t t c a i rnn>r9nl 9 c mac c t f fit. Tn -/ t 0 o T 12 t 1 , 13 1 . 1 . . ,
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A $ts tort% of the I&e c%'( LI n&clfltrfnt I rc4 Crt'l ICol CO)1* Ct+!"I! * $ess
*oots and *outes of O#ff4ression
power elites use language as a tool to inculcate dominant ideolo-
gies through speech and literature iff the li-es of tile Eess power-
ful. 8greeing witfl tills idea, &artre (3916) wrote in the preface to
7anon%s 'he 5$'retched of the 6arth, O.<ot so -ery tong ago, the earth
num"ered two thousand million infla"itants* fi-e tlundrcd million
men, and one 9ll ousand f 9-e fl undred million nati-e s . (ff e former
had t he ord; the others had use of it " (p. 0). 7anon %s th oflgh ts
on colonialis mEpostcofoniali&m; the im port of "uilding, nf 3ff urf ng,
and sustainM ng a -ia"le critical Consciousness among the oppressed;
the Aower of language in the hands .f the oppressor; and fife calf to
acti-ism, and e-en re-olt, are found in the wrififlg& of su"se5uent
critical theorists.
French Sociolobists' Contributions to CT
&e-eral 7rench philosophers and sociologists (8lfffusser, natl. t
driflard, Gourdieu, :errida, 7oucault, and Hy.tard) also ha-e added
to critical theorizing- (he contri"utions of Gourdiefr, 7oucault and
:errida in particular $lane influenced critical language and literacy
research. Gourdieu%s articulation of the n.tf.n of ha"itffs suggests
mo-ing difference f)eyond &ocial class to include culture. fie saw a
need, as did 7anon, to "ridge the "inary of of) /ecf i-e all d su" /ecti-e;
to understand social dynamics, including capital Ccffffflra$, social L
and sym"olic), as well as field, practice, amt reffe#i-fty. 7oucauft%s
thin!ing has informed critical tfleorizing, especially his framewor! of
social flfstory, arcflaeofogy, and genealogy. fie writes that discourse,
!nowledge'power, and p.ststructuralism are important aspects of
contemporary critical wor!s on the rote of hegemony and dominant
ideology in society. :errida%s ma/or contri"ul ions focus on language
decon&trucff on, and adopting alternati-e -iewpoint&.
(u; 5NffED S,A,-S& D..(& A.D RDff/f/0s
e e#tend the rOOf & of critical f heorizfng "y e#amining some roofs
and routes witfif the Bnited &tates that add "alance f o f radii ional
;ur.Cent(iC -iewpoint s- .ppression is not limited to any particular
racial'ethnic group, gender, or class; howe-er we center our discus-
si.n on the scho$arstlip of 8frican 8mericans while also ac!nowledg-
ing the schotarsflip and act i6fS3f of .f hers.
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
7ene r a t e 8
(ile Bnited &tates has a long and distur"ing history of racial op-
pression against people of 8frican descenf. 2illions of people were
forcecf into "ondage and sla-ery at Gance 9sfand in &ierra Heone and
ta!en to @orre 9sland in &enegal and ottler 8frican ports of deparO
lure. (he power .f languages and literacies to li"erate thin!ing and
to com m fin MCate "ey.nd tile use of words was recognized as laws were
esta"lished and enforced that for"ade pe.ple .f 8frican descent to
use tteir !nowledges, cuftures languages, literacies, and Ot9er c.m-
munfcaf i-e systems. (o sur-i-e, sla-es were forced to assimilate and
acculturate in accord with their oppressors. <umerous "ra-e Glac!s
and illies defied these laws and cust oms, pro-iding fiferacy inst ruc -
t loll to sla-e s amt f reed Glac!s. Haws f hat granted citizenship only to
free illie mate Eandowners made if nearly impossi"le for people of
Color to progress cconomicafly p.fiffcatty, and socially.
;arly on, :a-id al!er ( f 6+)) cflarged 8fricans and their progeny
to de-elop "a spirit of in5uiry and in-estigation respecting our miserO
ie s and wref cfledness in th is Dep' i2lic lallif of li2e7n!'f (p. 4 italics in the
originat)% tn an 366 + spcecf 9, :ouglass ( 3661) Hl sec$ the term -fife color
line in 8merica" to ctlaracterize tie racial hatred that di-ided t9e na.
lion cAA% 4-6). 8uto"iographicalty, he recalled his oppressor%s reaction
to ills a"ility to read* "8 nigger sfloufcf !now nothing :ut to o"ey his
master-f o do as he is told to do. . . . ff you teach t9at nigger , . . flow fo
read% t here would "e no !eep iffg him " (p. ,9). :ouglass u nffersf ood fie
9mAortance of "ecoming his "own masfer," or de-eloping and acting
with a critical consciousness (p. 9)). P
5isio'la'ies in an In8erfed 9orld: African American %cholars
8frican 8merican scholars who efn"raced a critical consciousness
include 8nna Eulia (=aywood) Cooper, the mother of Glac! 7eminism;
illiam ;dward Gurgflarctf C!!*,E.;.& :u Gois, a founder of fife <ation.
at 8ssociation for the 8d?.ancemenf of Colored people (<88Cp); and
Carter @% ood&on, fie rattler of <egro history. (heir scholarship
and social acti-ism fle$ped supply intellectual leadership to 8frican
8mericans wflo were see!ing social transformation and iusfice, (hen
defied ideological and cultural flegemony and cflalfenged the use of"
science as "proof" of racial, intellectual, and moral inferiority "y draw-
ing from "roader historical, cultural, and intellectual lineages as weft
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as "y highlighting political, economic, social, and racial oppression.
(heir li-es, research, and acti-ism foreshadow critical race theory.
(heir scholarship unco-ered the ideological and racist ideas that
dominated estern thought and perpetuated the oppression of 8fri-
can 8mericans, which was allegedly supported "y scientific facts, "ut
more accurately affirmed social and political pre/udices. Cooper (3692)
e#posed the hypocrisy of the feminist mo-ement that fought for
hite women%s rights while ignoring Glac! women. &he also decried
the rhetoric of 8frican 8merican men, who f.ught for the rights of 8f-
rican 8mericans "ut focused on the rights of men. in another e#ample,
:u Gois-in his classic sociological study (9ze 0hiladel#hia 1egro (3699),
the first case study of an 8frican 8merican community-situated a his-
tory of people of 8frican descent within their li-es in contemporary
society. =is findings re-ealed that the pro"lems of 8frican 8rnerica#ls
were not genetic or "iological, as presumed, "ut economic. sociologi-
cal, and psychological.
:u Gois also used narrati-es to con-ey his thin!ing, as in (he &oztfs
of -lac. +oI. (3994(39)+), where he prophetically wrote, "the pro"lem
of the (wentieth century is the pro"lem .f the color line" (p. <<<i&.
=e !new that the e#istence of people of 8frican descent, prior to their
ensla-ement, was missing in B.&. history, as was any discussion of how
their ensla-ement in the Bnited &tates shaped their consciousnesses*
8fter the ;gyptian and 9ndian the @ree! and the Doman, the (euton
and 2ongolian, the <egro is a sort of se-enth son, "orn with a -eil,
and gifted with second-&ight in this 8merican world-a world which
yields him no true self-consciousness, "ut only lets him &ee himself
through the rc-efation of the other world. 9t is a peculiar &ensation,
this dou"le consciousness, this sense of always loo!ing at one%s self
though the eyes of others of measuring one%s soul "y the tape of a
world that loo!s on in amused contempt and pity. .ne e-er feels 9ris
two-ness,-an 8merican and a <egro; two souls, two tlfougllts, two
unreconciled stri-ings; two warring ideals in one dar! hody, whose
dogged strength alone !eeps it from "eing torn asunder" (pfQ. 2-+)
:u G.9&%s reference to the -eil and second-sightedness mar!ed the
8frican 8merican e#perience as fundamentally different from the
hite 8merican e#perience.
:u Gois "elie-ed that to apply 2ar#ist t9eories in the Bnited
&tates, one must consider the role of race and class oppression un-
der caAitalism- lie ac!nowledged that the white wor!ing class in the
Bnited &tates stood in opposition to the furtherance of Afrfca t!=er>
7enerate8
ic an economic , ?oit ical, and social gains. =e surmised that aEthough
2ar#ism may "e an accurate portra$%al of a history of economic and
social change in 39333-century ;urope, it needed to "e modified to
address the history of economic and social change for 8frican 8men -
cans in t he Bn fled &tates.
7inalMy, Carter @ . oodson o"ser-ed and commented on how
the economic and social-relational forces shaped the consciousness
of 8frican 8mericans* "hen you control a man%s thin!ing you do
not ha-e to worry a"out his actions. Nou do not ha-e to tell him t.
stand here or go yonder. =e will find his proper place and wi stay
in it. . . . =is education ma!es it necessary" c 9R:odson, 1,@@, p. #iii).
=e argued that many 8frican 8mericans were conscious of the efforts
to coerce them into the ways of thin!ing, worEd-fews and "eliefs of
??%hites,% many fought against coercions t9at 5uestioned their intel-
ligence, morals. and humanity. oodson argued that what appeared
to "e a consensual response to the lac! of education and educational
opportunities "y 8frican 8mericans was not consent, hut an illusion
created "y a coerced response of an oppressed people. =e "elie-ed
that race is central to understanding 8frican 8merican consciousness
and ife e#periences in the Bnited &tates*
(he same educational process which inspires and stimulates the op-
Aressor with fife thought that he is el%erything and has accomplished
e-erything worthwhile, depresses and crushes at the same time the
QAar! of genius in the <egro "y ma!ing him fee) that hfs race does
not amount to much and ne-er will measure ufr to the standards of
others. ( ??%oodson, 39++, p. #iii)
!!*cAc&c0Bor e#Alained t9at education was shaped "y ideological hege.
molly to neutralize pedagogical and curricular decisions i,e., thfe
relational forces that made possi"le and accepta"le chattel sla-ery,
discrimination and segregation, and physical -iolence (fynching,>
murders% nfutilatfo#ls, rape), and sifzffu/fane.fzf&fy !ept, or limited, dis.
cussions of oAAression enacted "y fife Bnited &tates offt of historl%
hoo!s% 9le felt strongly that the B.&. s-steflf of education was stfffc"..
lured to coerce all 8mericans to see ,lirfcan 8mericans as inferior to
hites, whether that inferiority was "ased on "science," history, or
morality% and to e#tol t9e achie-ements of hites. (o t9at end, he
created a-enues for the pu"lication of <egro iStOr!* and "oo!s t9at
cele"rated the accomplishments of 8frican 8merican-s.
Collecti-ely, these scholars dcmonstrated through their li-es, re..
search% and aCti*isfff that the ideologies, -alues, and "eliefs field and
by Camf3canner from intsig.corn
promoted "y their oppressors must "e challenged. (hey understood
that economic oppression is insufficient to capture e-ery form of op-
pression e#perienced "y 8frican 8mericans.
ALTERNAT\ YE u.s. Rocms
9n the mid-2.th century Glac! and hite freedom fighters demon-
strated their resistance to social in/ustices. 8mong the many fear-
less wor!ers against class and racial oppression were 2yles =orton
C39)4-3994) and li"eration theologists.
2yles =orton, a hite male, was the founder of the =ighlander
7ol! &chool (renamed in 3913 to the =ighlander Desearch and ;du-
cation Center) in <ew 2ar!et, (ennessee. 9lls life of po-erty and
his study of 2ar# and Henin encouraged him to fight against all
forms of oppression, protesting for wor!ers% rights and participating
in the ci-il rights mo-ement (desegregation, -oter education, and
-oter registration) to transform society. =orton t3996) "elie-ed that
critical consciousness was necessary for social and political progress
as people "learn to -alue their own e#perience, to analyze their own
e#perience, and to !now how to ma!e decisions" (p. 40). ie offered
literacy programs designed to teach 8frican 8mericans to read and
write in order to pass literacy tests and there"y gain the right to
-ote.
=orton organized literacy programs "y enlisting &eptima Clar!,
a &outh Carolina schoolteacher and freedom fighter, who called
upon her niece, Gernice Do"inson, to lead the program. Do"inson
t aught 8f rican 8merican adults "y as! i fig t he 9ll to te fer a story
that she wrote down and as!ed them to read. &he used t 9re interests
of t he adults to teach them to read, and many 9Qassed the literacy
tests. =orton (3996) rec ailed, "along with "ecolll frig 9i tera te, they
le arne d to organize, t hey Kcame d to protest , t hey learned to cleft laud
their rights, "ecause they also learned that you couldn%t lust read
and write yourself into freedom" (p. 3),), Hife and learning at tffe
=ighlander 7ol! &chool was unapologetically interracial. 9lorfoll
declared, "to ma!e life worth li-ing you ha-e to "elie-e i l3 those
th ings that will "ring a"out /ustice in society, and "e willing to dfe
for them" (p. 20).
Hi"eration theology is a form of critical consciousness "ased on
Christian "eliefs that see!s to end the suffering in the world. 9t identi-
fie& @od%s compassion for oppressed people as a starting point, fin-
limited "y history. geography, or denomination. Gelie-ers en-isage
li"eral ion t heologQ% as an e#pression of their faith and duty to acti-ate
Christ lan t heology on ;arth "ecause-in an uncertain world-@od
is fai hf ul . S hey loo! 9 o Christ as 9.ifre rator c a secular la"el); in the
=oly Gi"le, Christ is named 8dl-.cate. :eli-erer, @ood &hepherd. and
&a-ior. 9.i"eratioff theologists draw support from scripfural references
to the needs of the poor (He-iticus 24*+&-+6; Hu!e 3*43-4+, ,*3136)
and .f t he oppressed ( 9saiah 1 33-2 and Eames 4*3 -13 . (hey carry their
message to the masses through social and political acti-ism.
(he critical theological consciousness of ,%?frican 8merican Chris-
tians is without a single historical "eginning point. 9t is inf.rmed "y
the wor!s of 9R. G. :uGofs, <9. @ar-ey, 7. @rim!e, <. (urner, and C.
@. oodson, among others. 8s early as 39)2, e#-sla-e @rfm!e de-
clared, "@od is not dead, nor is he an indifferent onloo!er at what
is going on in this world. . Eustice may sleep, "ut it ne-er dies"
(5uoted in 9Roodson, 39,2, p- +4,3. Glac! Hi"eration (heology (GH()
e-ol-ed during the ci-il right& mo-ement as the ne#us of Glac! Aower
and Glac! ChristianitQL grounded in li"eration theol.gR. , the Glac! re-
ligious e#perience, and the struggle for freedomL GH( em"odies @od%s
enduring and e-erlasting compassion, lo-ing!indncss, trustworthi-
ness. mercy, and grace, with a particular emphasis on spiritual and
moral consciousnesses.
Aroponents of GH( include Eames if" Cone (99+6). Gen/amin ;.
2ays tl&9 ,-399 ,) , 2artiff Hilt her Fing Er. t 3929-39163, 2alcolm T
i i 924-3914 ), L%? dam C . Aowell &r. ( 3614-394+) , and 8dam C. Aowell Er.
C39)6-39023, +mong others. Cone (390)), a leader in the field and one
of its most prolif ic writers, "elie-es that hite Christians, acti-ists, and
polific.33 leaders oppo)sed the idea of di-idillg Christianity into a Glac!'
W9ite "inarQL and promoted the idea that Christianify is uni-ersal and
color-"lilld. Aroponelfts of GH( argue that such uni-ersalisf ideas are a
continuation of a 9?%hite interpretation of the Gi"le, a 9Rhife 9na"ilft$L
to see 'loll- 9Rh lies as human. the irreconcila"le suffering of people of
Color at the hands of hites in the name of "iustice," and the incul-
cation of doominant ideologies that impeded self-actualization among
people of Color. GH( continues to addless human suffering tflr.ughofft
the world and to promote an appreciation of 8frican 8merican hf>tof-y
and culture, "rotherhood. freedom. hope. li"eration, lo-e, and social
/ustice. 2oreo-er, GH( resists capitalism, po-erty, and dominating ide-
ologies lilac promote human suffering.
@arcia (3960) e#plains the uni5ueness of li"eration theology wit "-
in Hatindad, noting concern with "contri"uting to each .ther%s wor!
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2 6
so it might "e .f ser-ice to the church and the formation of ministers
see!ing to ser-e our community" (p. 231). 8 similar actM ?%isl perspec iCe
is e-inced "y the ife and wor! of Aaulo 7reife, whose connection to
li"eration theology is reflected in his commitment to Catholicism and
wor! with the Wor8 Council of Churches (he ser-ed as an educational
consultant while e#iled in @ene-a, &witzerland). @adotti (399,) argues
that 7reire%s ideas fall within "a progressi-e conception of theology and
the social and political role of the church . . . especially in Hatin 8meri-
ca and defends the in-ol-ement of Christians in the struggle for li"era-
tion" (pp. 30)303). (he critical consciousness of Aaulo 7reife also has
"ad a tremendous impact on language and literacy research.
A89zH. 7D;m;* fDEORE, "l'6*AC! AND A;:8C.@N
Aaulo Deglud <e-es 7reire%s C3923-3990) life, scholarship, and com-
mitment to critical consciousness and acti-ism ha-e "een capturecf
in numerous te#ts (7reire, 3994, 3991; @adotti, 399,; 8. 7reire U
2acedo, 3996). 7relre (3991) recalled two life-changing moments
that helped shape his political and pedagogical ideas- 7irst, he o"-
ser-ed t hat th e economic and social condit ions t isat t>ausetM 9 fl e
oppre s sed t o fe ar were dest ructi-e-relational f orce s !ept t he op-
pressed depende n t on their oppre sso r s and dom inated their "odies
and e-ery moment of their Ei-es. =e "elie-ed that oppression is eco-
nomically, politically, and socially c.nstituted. &econd, as director
of the 9ndustrial &ocial &e r-ice "SES &, a program initially designed to
educate Grazils rural la"or force, he em"raced and taught the power
of dialogic pedagogy. 7reire rec.gnized a gap "etween the education
offered "y the state and the educati.n the poor needed lo ma!e
informed, purposi-e, and proacti-e decisions. 7urther, he o"ser-ed
that the educational system is a !ey componen t u sed "y power elites
to retain power and status and to dominate or control the thin!ing
of the masses through the instruction of sterile currfcllfums. (he
central idea of 7reire%s wor!, one that he "elie-ed is fundamental for
social change, is co;fscientizaao. (he concept e-ol-ed o-er time. 7or
e#ample, in 3910, he declared*
;-ery relationship of domination, of e#ploitation, of oppression, is
"y nature -iolent, whether or not the -iolence is e#pressed "y drastic
meansL 9n such a relationship. dominator and dominated ai(e are
reduced to things-the former dehumanized "y an e#cess of Aower,
the Fater :E the lac! of it. t7reire, 2))2, p. l.f)
7reire identified three stages, or le-els, .f cri t ical con scion sne&s* ( / $
seEfE i -%in tram sit inc con sciousEless ( MMmite d consciousness ) , c2 E na / 9,e
transit i-ffy la simple t rust iffg alt itude t oward reaEifyE, and ( +) critical
9ran sit i-ffy ( i rf di l%idtEal a ml cri t Mcal aware 2ess of pr."lems, and t he
a"iEity to enf% a%e in cl ialogue in search of solfzt ions$ in 3 90 9 , (;re ire
urlderplaQ.ed the Ear #ist .l.e rt ones, descri"in g co+fsce,3ti =a8o as
arr act of !nowing, if our understanding of this act is a dialectical
oneL (he re f ore, t>o% ist'it+tzti/tll)'t1!" can not "e either all act of transferO
ence of !nowledge, nor arr intel!Oct5a) game. "ut rather-let us reO
peat-a real act of !nowing what deff"fands pra#is. IEi"e process
of conscie%lfizu30) which does not pass through the urEl%eifing of realO
ity to fife practice of it s t fans furmation, is a process which "ecomes
frustrated. 9p. f&
9n 3991, 7reife re-ealed that his focus on class was purpcseful--an at-
tempt to counter Plorn iflazlf ideologies. Hater he e#tended the concept to
include "awareness of the historical. sociopolftical economic, cultural.
and su"/ectil.e reality that shapes our li-es, arld our a"ility to transform
that reaEft"$."% (7reire, 3996, p. +,)+. (o hrea! the stranglehold .l%er file
minds of the oppressed, he argued that people need to "ecome criticalll.
conscious, descrf "ing the e-olution of cuCiscie!Itizi If<<t<:fo as an in telfectual-
iourney. =e wrote, "Geing conscious is a radical form of "eing, of
"eing lluEElarl. Et pertains to "eings (flat not only !now, "ut !now that
they !now" (A- 7reire U- 2 acedo, M 960, p . 320 ). 8s @ramsci and 7anon
also suggested, human!ind needs to de-elop a "critical spirit" (7reife,
2))2, A% 0). 7reire%s ideas a"out consciousness, alienation, oppression,
Aower, and resistance mirror 7allon%s emphasis on the need to de-elop
consciousness ( self critical, and col 9ccti-e); apprecia te one .s cult fire, fife
righ t to one%s language, and the import ance of ed ucatforl and liferacl%
for the nEasses; and support social arld political actfl%i&fEl. (here also
are Aoifl ts of difference, as 7ar o e#pressed concern a"out the role of
dominant ideologies in misrepresenting and stereotyping the ".tfler,"
esAecialfy the cultures of the people of 8frican descent, whereas 7reire 9s
often criticized for not addressing and opposing racism more openly,
STLIh RT HAL L: LI TE RA ART IC fl LATIO N, AND COA_J"M tLNl CATIO N
Gritish Cultural &tudies, inspired "y far#ist and @ramscian thin!O
ifEg, surfaced in the early 391)4, ill part as a response to tfle needs
and 9ll.es .f tfle ?-or!iffg classes. (he Girmingham &chool of (hong ht.
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.ff =rtItca(>tl CO!tsCtOc?% *e.%carc@A
founded "y &tuart Daf. Ric9ar8 =oggartf ;. A- (hompson, and Day-
mond illiams, e-ol-ed into the Cerltre for Contemporary Cultural
&tudies CCCC&) under the leadership of =oggart at the Bni-ersity of
Girmingham. (he name change reflects CCC&%s study of language and
its effects on popular culture. :uring =all.s tenure as director CCC&%s
focus shifted to understandif3g the struggle o-er meaning in the li-es
of oppressed groups. =all a Eamaican national, also s.ught to under-
stand how racial, ethnic, and national groups ma!e meaning, espe-
cially how they ma!e meaning that is in opposition to mainstream
representations. =all%s wor! focuses on how these groups struggle to
re-name and re-present themsel-es in oppositioEl to popular images
promoted "y the power elites through the mediaL =e appreciates and
accounts for the systems .f !nowing that "oth the se.der and fire
recei-er use in ma!ing meaning possi"le. =e also en-isages !n.wl-
edge as multiple and comple#, not singular or simplistic. 7urther, fie
pro-ides a structure that suggests how ideological and cultural hege-
monies mo-ed from the a"stract to the concrete and how they wor!
in real time and space Gfai, 390)).
Stall%s (3962) definition .f ideo'o and his understanding of he-
gemony inform his theorizing =e defines ide.la % as " mental frame-
wor!s- the languages, t he concepts, categories, Mwagery of thought,
and the systems of representation-which different classes and social
groups deploy in order to ma!e sense of , def ine. f igure out and render
intelligi"le the way society wor!s" (p. 21). 9f e suggest s that the "pto"-
lem of ideology" can "ecome a material force, where language can "e
used to amass or support power and domination. =is ideas dismiss
the call for uni-ersal approaches to !nowing "ecause he "elie-es they
ignore how !nowing can only offer situated and temporal e#plana-
tions at "est. =is notion of theoretical inade5uacy punctuates how
hegemony* ( 9) iden t if ies Mradii 9onaM historical approaches and e#pla-
nations of the past, and c2) e#plains the failure of dominant concepts,
definitions, and models as e#planations for the Bnderserned.
AcoAlc of Color is not mentioned in the writings of Fant , =egel, a 9
*? tar!f as we as their successors. Bnla"eled oppression, howe-er
nonelheless oppressi-e- (he distincti-e B& roofs and routes of Cr
cal theorizing inClBcfecl in this chapter emphasize the e#periences
peoAle of Color, women, and the intersection of multiple oppressior
.ur discussion of their critical theorizing, though limited, e-fnc
the struggfe for social /ustice, e5uality, and democracy.
e "riefly re-iewed the way 7reire%s notion .f co!Iscie!;ffza='
and 9 tall.s understanding of ideology and hegernony e#plicate hc
peo7Q9e ma!e meaning, how meaning-ma!ing is informed "y cultu
and language, and how e-ery human "eirfg has the right to cor
municate in ways that are culturally and linguistically authentic ar
appropriate.
??%e hal-e considered mo-ements within criticality and B,&. hi
tory where race and gender oppressions were marginalized as we
as their current tcntrality. &pecifically, the critical theorizing of tff
Aast which ignored race'ethnicity and gender, found that these &am
forms .f oppressi.n d.minate current crfticalify and are e#tended t
inclucfe articulations of multiple and intersecting oppressions. 2ot
imAortantfy, the scholarship and the -oices of the oppressed are intc
graf to new understandings of criticality.
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