A review of Fault Lines by Dr. Voddie Baucham Jr.
“Fault Lines” explains the ascendency of critical social justice in every aspect of American politics and culture. Baucham defines critical social justice as the view that the world is divided between oppressor (e.g., white, male, heterosexual, cisgender) and oppressed (e.g., black, female, homosexual, transgender) groups.
This understanding of society lies at the heart of cultural and political debates about racism, sexism, homophobia, transphobia, xenophobia, and Islamophobia. It also informs the language of antiracism, intersectionality, and white privilege that is now ubiquitous in American life.
A critical social justice worldview is not simply a set of beliefs. It is a way of viewing the world that is built on assumptions about, among other things, humanity, authority, evil, and justice. The theories Baucham presents in “Fault Lines” can be thought of as a stone wall that is supported by an arch. Critical social justice is the keystone theory that holds the arch together and critical race theory is the capstone that sits on top of the wall.
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