Oppression and Conflict

Beyond Intractability: A Free Knowledge Base on More Constructive Approaches to Destructive Conflict

Oppression and Conflict

	Oppression and Conflict: Introduction Oppression is at the root of many of the most serious, enduring conflicts in the world today. This very short essay introduces the concept of oppression.
	The Nature and Origins of Oppression The beginning of oppression can be traced back to the invention of agriculture. This essay outlines the history of oppression.
	Forms of Oppression This essay defines five types of injustice that leads to oppression: distributive injustice, procedural injustice, retributive injustice, moral exclusion, and cultural imperialism.
	Maintaining Oppression In this essay, the author considers factors that keep oppression in place including power, the social production of meaning, self-fulfilling prophecies and distorted relationships.
	Overcoming Oppression: Awakening the Sense of Injustice Awareness of injustice is a precondition for overcoming it. This essay discusses why people often aren't aware of their own and others' oppression.
	Overcoming Oppression through Persuasion This essay examines how low power groups can appeal to the oppressive group's moral values, self interests, and self realization to convince them to change their relationship with the other group(s).
	Overcoming Oppression with Power Thomas Hobbes wrote, "Cities and kingdoms, for their own security, undertake invasions out of fear of being invaded and seek to weaken or destroy neighbors as a way of reducing foreign threats." Security guarantees are one way out of this destructive cycle.

Thaw with her gentle persuasion is more powerful than Thor with his hammer. The one melts, the other breaks into pieces. -- Henry David Thoreau

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The Beyond Intractability Knowledge Base Project
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