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Schubert, J. Daniel. “Defending Multiculturalism: From Hegemony to Symbolic Violence.” American Behavioral Scientist 45, no. 7 (2002): 1088–1102. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/0002764202045007004

Dan Schubert is a professor of Sociology at Dickinson College.

Multiculturalism is currently under attack in both the academy and society. Whereas the concept of hegemony has often been used in conceptualizing defenses of multiculturalism, the argument is made that a shift to a concern with symbolic violence would be a more appropriate and empowering defense against this backlash. Drawing primarily on the work of Pierre Bourdieu, it is argued that a focus on symbolic violence shows the ways in which daily practices produce and foster domination, including those practices of the dominated themselves. This shift will contribute to the empowerment of previously subordinated groups.

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