Engaging Critical Theory and the Social Justice Movement

“No more old white men!” The Pulse nightclub shooting. Feminist glaciology. What do these incidents have in common? We might have a vague sense that they are somehow connected to “political correctness.” Perhaps they capture a kind of 21st-century progressive zeitgeist but are otherwise unconnected. Alternatively, we could dismiss these statements as utterly nonsensical. What does gender have to do with glaciers? How is capitalism to blame for a terrorist attack at a gay nightclub? Both reactions are understandable but incorrect. Both views flow from a knowledge area known as critical theory, which seeks to understand human relationships through the fundamental lens of power.