Positionality in Rigged Hierarchies

This chapter explains the multiple hierarchy, politics of positionality approach to understanding injustice. The pivotal system is society, and societal stratification in unjust societies is described, as well as stratification&s;s implications for mobility. Lenski and Lenski&s;s theory of sociocultural evolution provides a plausible explanation for the origin of societal inequality. Precarity statistics documenting the poor standing of the United States on indicators of equality are shared. I use the perspective-enhancing metaphors of pyramid and wheel to characterize the relative position of populations. I compare society to a rigged game. Oppression is defined, and I provide an overview of generic subprocesses of injustice, and an illustration of how some Italian Americans in a suburban community used categorizing, stereotyping, and opportunity hoarding to gain control of the landscaping business. I also discuss the use of marginalized and exclusionary processes to support segregation in Baltimore. In my example of possibilities, I review Young&s;s case study of positional injustice and share experiences at an alternative mental health center dedicated to a democratic, egalitarian, person-to-person organization. Millennials in the United States are characterized as a population at intersectional risk.