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despite its focus on positionality and social location, standpoint theory does not argue for total relativity of viewpoints; every individual, socially located standpoint is equally strong for understanding reality. Rather, consistent with Marxist dialectical materialism, standpoint embraces the fact that we, as individuals, are expressions of social relations, and that, as such, we are tied historically, culturally, politically, and materially to institutions. Thus, __the point isn’t to say that “all standpoints are equal,” but instead that the position of the oppressed creates a stronger standpoint for better understanding the material reality of society.__
A Marxist Education
Wayne Au
There is an interesting dilemma here for academic research – if the standards of evidence are too high, then little may be learnt, but if they are too low, what we learn (or think we learn) may not be reliable. The world of policy-making and public action, however, is different from that of academic research. In that universe, we have good reason to make constructive use of experience. Indeed, without it, we would be deprived of rich sources of insight and forced to take decisions based on very limited knowledge.
Sense and Solidarity
Jean Drèze
Some wealthy people even celebrate the illusion of their self-sufficiency, counseling others to “be independent like me.” But the perpetuation of this illusion is destructive, both to our society and to wealthy people themselves. It may be where some of the makers-and-takers rhetoric comes from.
Born on Third Base
Chuck Collins
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