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We Have Never Been Woke: The Cultural Contradictions of a New Elite

How a new “woke” elite uses the language of social justice to gain more power and status—without helping the marginalized and disadvantaged

Society has never been more egalitarian—in theory. Prejudice is taboo, and diversity is strongly valued. At the same time, social and economic inequality have exploded. In We Have Never Been Woke, Musa al-Gharbi argues that these trends are closely related, each tied to the rise of a new elite—the symbolic capitalists. In education, media, nonprofits, and beyond, members of this elite work primarily with words, ideas, images, and data, and are very likely to identify as allies of antiracist, feminist, LGBTQ, and other progressive causes. Their dominant ideology is “wokeness” and, while their commitment to equality is sincere, they actively benefit from and perpetuate the inequalities they decry. Indeed, their egalitarian credentials help them gain more power and status, often at the expense of the marginalized and disadvantaged.

We Have Never Been Woke details how the language of social justice is increasingly used to justify this elite—and to portray the losers in the knowledge economy as deserving their lot because they think or say the “wrong” things about race, gender, and sexuality. Al-Gharbi’s point is not to accuse symbolic capitalists of hypocrisy or cynicism. Rather, he examines how their genuine beliefs prevent them from recognizing how they contribute to social problems—or how their actions regularly provoke backlash against the social justice causes they champion.

A powerful critique, We Have Never Been Woke reveals that only by challenging this elite’s self-serving narratives can we hope to address social and economic inequality effectively.

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We Have Never Been Woke: The Cultural Contradictions of a New Elite

How a new “woke” elite uses the language of social justice to gain more power and status—without helping the marginalized and disadvantaged

Society has never been more egalitarian—in theory. Prejudice is taboo, and diversity is strongly valued. At the same time, social and economic inequality have exploded. In We Have Never Been Woke, Musa al-Gharbi argues that these trends are closely related, each tied to the rise of a new elite—the symbolic capitalists. In education, media, nonprofits, and beyond, members of this elite work primarily with words, ideas, images, and data, and are very likely to identify as allies of antiracist, feminist, LGBTQ, and other progressive causes. Their dominant ideology is “wokeness” and, while their commitment to equality is sincere, they actively benefit from and perpetuate the inequalities they decry. Indeed, their egalitarian credentials help them gain more power and status, often at the expense of the marginalized and disadvantaged.

We Have Never Been Woke details how the language of social justice is increasingly used to justify this elite—and to portray the losers in the knowledge economy as deserving their lot because they think or say the “wrong” things about race, gender, and sexuality. Al-Gharbi’s point is not to accuse symbolic capitalists of hypocrisy or cynicism. Rather, he examines how their genuine beliefs prevent them from recognizing how they contribute to social problems—or how their actions regularly provoke backlash against the social justice causes they champion.

A powerful critique, We Have Never Been Woke reveals that only by challenging this elite’s self-serving narratives can we hope to address social and economic inequality effectively.

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We Have Never Been Woke: The Cultural Contradictions of a New Elite

We Have Never Been Woke: The Cultural Contradictions of a New Elite

by Musa al-Gharbi
We Have Never Been Woke: The Cultural Contradictions of a New Elite

We Have Never Been Woke: The Cultural Contradictions of a New Elite

by Musa al-Gharbi

Overview

How a new “woke” elite uses the language of social justice to gain more power and status—without helping the marginalized and disadvantaged

Society has never been more egalitarian—in theory. Prejudice is taboo, and diversity is strongly valued. At the same time, social and economic inequality have exploded. In We Have Never Been Woke, Musa al-Gharbi argues that these trends are closely related, each tied to the rise of a new elite—the symbolic capitalists. In education, media, nonprofits, and beyond, members of this elite work primarily with words, ideas, images, and data, and are very likely to identify as allies of antiracist, feminist, LGBTQ, and other progressive causes. Their dominant ideology is “wokeness” and, while their commitment to equality is sincere, they actively benefit from and perpetuate the inequalities they decry. Indeed, their egalitarian credentials help them gain more power and status, often at the expense of the marginalized and disadvantaged.

We Have Never Been Woke details how the language of social justice is increasingly used to justify this elite—and to portray the losers in the knowledge economy as deserving their lot because they think or say the “wrong” things about race, gender, and sexuality. Al-Gharbi’s point is not to accuse symbolic capitalists of hypocrisy or cynicism. Rather, he examines how their genuine beliefs prevent them from recognizing how they contribute to social problems—or how their actions regularly provoke backlash against the social justice causes they champion.

A powerful critique, We Have Never Been Woke reveals that only by challenging this elite’s self-serving narratives can we hope to address social and economic inequality effectively.

Product Details

ISBN-13: 9780691232614
Publisher: Princeton University Press
Publication date: 10/08/2024
Sold by: Barnes & Noble
Format: eBook
Pages: 432
File size: 995 KB

About the Author

Musa al-Gharbi is a sociologist and assistant professor in the School of Communication and Journalism at Stony Brook University. He is a columnist for The Guardian and his writing has also appeared in the New York Times, the Washington Post, and The Atlantic, among other publications.

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

“In this important and timely book, Musa al-Gharbi describes the rise of the ‘symbolic capitalists,’ and how an ideology has evolved to cement their power and restrict entry from outsiders. We Have Never Been Woke effectively addresses a wide readership on this contentious issue.”—Tyler Cowen, George Mason University

“Uncomfortable and eye-opening, We Have Never Been Woke puts in sharp relief the contradictions of cultural elites who champion important social causes while they simultaneously, and perhaps obliviously, perpetuate inequities and inequalities in their own daily lives.”—Elizabeth Currid-Halkett, author of The Sum of Small Things: A Theory of the Aspirational Class

“In this smart, discerning, and indispensable book, Musa al-Gharbi lays much needed and essential groundwork for understanding what the phrase ‘woke’ really means and where it comes from. Mistakenly pegged as the clarion call of so-called social justice warriors, woke represents a corruption of the liberal tradition at the hands of the new symbolic capitalists who sit atop today’s economy. An essential read for all those seeking to overcome self-serving narratives and address social disadvantage more effectively.”—Richard Florida, author of The Rise of the Creative Class

“Our interminable culture war is marked by bluster and bomb-throwing that produces more heat than light. Musa al-Gharbi rises above the fray with a book that is certain to become the definitive account of elite social justice discourse and its myriad hypocrisies. We Have Never Been Woke is mandatory reading for anyone who wants to understand the social and economic forces that sustain both performative progressivism and its critics.”—Tyler Austin Harper, Bates College

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