Social Justice

Theoretical Constructs and Social Justice

What does it mean to say that theory can influence and shape racist, classist, and sexist notions of people, groups, and societies?

Theoretical constructs, the text by Finn & Jacobson (2003) tells us, are highly influenced by prevailing political, cultural and social hierarchies. Accordingly, those theories of sociological order which ultimately are accepted as organic and naturally occurring are often tied into certain pointedly hegemonic imperatives. Finn & Jacobson point out that 'theory' is often the insidious euphemism employed to justify the demeaning impulses of colonialism. Here, scholarly objectivity is claimed as the justification for practicing the exploitation, anthropological deconstruction and democratization of native populations all over the world. According to our primary text, "in many ways, indigenous peoples have been oppressed by theory. Outsider understandings and assumptions have guided the probing into 'the way our origins have been examined, our histories recounted,...
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