Henry Giroux | McMaster University (original) (raw)

Books by Henry Giroux

The metaphor of an American nightmare provides us with a rhetorical space where a kind of double ... more The metaphor of an American nightmare provides us with a rhetorical space where a kind of double consciousness, based in both resistance and hope, can emerge. This is a consciousness that identifies and rejects structures of domination and repression. It is an expression of what Vaclav Havel once called "the power of the powerlessness," but it also gestures beyond this, to what the poet Claudia Rankine calls a new understanding of community, politics, and engaged collective resistance in which a radical notion of the social contract is revived. This is a critical consciousness in which individuals and groups allow themselves to embrace the condition of exile-with its underlying message of being flawed-in solidarity with their brothers and sisters who are targeted because of their politics, gender, religion, residency status, race, sexual preference, and country of origin. She writes of exile as an opportunity to address the resentment and retribution that have historically underlain denials of our common humanity. For Rankine, being "flawed differently" offers a metaphor for embracing our differences. It offers diversity as a strength in our collective resistance against the pre-fascist "America First" script in which whiteness is sustained as the dominating feature of a violent society that has descended directly from genocidal settler-colonialism.

This paper charts the emerging elements of white supremacy and white nationalism embraced by Trum... more This paper charts the emerging elements of white supremacy and white nationalism embraced by Trump and his major administration appointees.

What happens to a society when thinking is eviscerated and is disdained in favor of raw emotion? ... more What happens to a society when thinking is eviscerated and is disdained in favor of raw emotion? What happens when political discourse functions as a bunker rather than a bridge?

From hatemongering tactics in the run-up to the 2016 presidential race, to the increasing number ... more From hatemongering tactics in the run-up to the 2016 presidential race, to the increasing number of mass shootings, to excessive police violence, evidence that America is at war with itself is everywhere around us. The question is not whether or not it's happening, but how to understand what's driving the crisis and how to prevent conditions from getting worse. In this insightful book, Henry A. Giroux offers a far-reaching critique of the economic interests, cultural dynamics, and political forces at work in the nation's shift toward increasingly abusive forms of power, and what can and should be done to resist them.

Reflecting on a wide range of social issues, Giroux contrasts Donald Trump's America with Sandra Bland's to understand who really benefits from politically fueled intolerance for immigrants, communities of color, Muslims, low-income families, and those who challenge state and corporate power. A passionate advocate for civil rights and the importance of the imagination, Giroux argues that only through widespread social investment in democracy and education can the common good hope to prevail over the increasingly concentrated influence of extreme right-wing politicians and self-serving economic interests.

In a series of essays that explore the intersections of politics, popular culture, and new forms ... more In a series of essays that explore the intersections of politics, popular culture, and new forms of social control in American society, Giroux explores how state and corporate interests have coalesced to restrict civil rights, privatize what what's left of public institutions, and diminish our collective capacity to participate as engaged citizens of a democracy

Papers by Henry Giroux

Canadian Journal of Education / Revue canadienne de l'éducation, 1988

Take Back Higher Education, 2004

Any discourse about the future has to begin with the issue of youth because more than any other g... more Any discourse about the future has to begin with the issue of youth because more than any other group, youth embody the dreams, desires, and commitment of a society’s obligations to the future. This echoes a classical principle of liberal democracy, in which youth both symbolized society’s responsibility to the future and offered a measure of its progress. For most of the twentieth century, Americans have embraced as a defining feature of politics that all levels of government would assume a large measure of responsibility for providing the resources, social provisions, security, and modes of education that simultaneously offered young people a future as well as expanded the meaning and depth of a substantive democracy. Youth not only registered symbolically the importance of modernity’s claim to progress, they also affirmed the importance of the liberal, democratic tradition of the social contract, in which adult responsibility was mediated through a willingness to fight for the rights of children, enact reforms that invested in their future, and provide the educational conditions necessary for them to make use of the freedoms they have while learning how to be critical citizens, all the while enabling the reproduction of that society. Within such a project, democracy was linked to the well-being of youth, while the status of how a society imagined democracy and its future was contingent on how it viewed its responsibility toward future generations.

Canadian Journal of Education / Revue canadienne de l'éducation, 1988

Take Back Higher Education, 2004

Pierre Bourdieu, a French Sociologist, was deeply concerned about the role that academics might p... more Pierre Bourdieu, a French Sociologist, was deeply concerned about the role that academics might play as a progressive force in politics. He believed that academics were indispensable, given their rigor as researchers, writers, and teachers in creating the pedagogical conditions that both furthered social and economic justice and challenged the forms of symbolic and material domination being exercised globally, especially under neoliberalism. Rejecting the commonplace assumption that academic work should be separate from the operations of politics, he reclaimed the role of the intellectual as an engaged social agent and “maintained that intellectuals have a fearsome form of social responsibility.”2 Following Edward Said, Noam Chomsky, Howard Zinn, and others, Bourdieu argued that for academics to become engaged intellectuals they had to repudiate the cult of professionalism that has often positioned educators as narrow specialists, unencumbered by matters of ethics, power, and ideology, and wedded to a sterile objectivity that largely serves to justify a retreat into a world of banal academic rituals and unapologetic escapism. Against the cult of professionalism, Bourdieu posited the notion of committed intellectuals in search of “realist” utopias.

Take Back Higher Education, 2004

The year 2003 marks the one-hundredth anniversary of W. E. B. Du Bois’s most celebrated publicati... more The year 2003 marks the one-hundredth anniversary of W. E. B. Du Bois’s most celebrated publication, The Souls of Black Folk. An astonishing work of literary, historical, and sociological merit, Souls has inspired generations of academicians and activists alike drawn to the politics of identity, the color line, double consciousness, the talented tenth, and theories of race. The year also marks the fortieth anniversary of Du Bois’s death in Ghana in August 1963. Save for Souls, the memory of Du Bois appears perpetually in danger of passing into oblivion, given the concerted efforts on the part of established powers to radically curtail his contributions to twentieth-century social and political thought. It seems that the commemoration of Souls—written by Du Bois in his early thirties—sanctions an official burial of the next 60 years of the author’s life, which were devoted to scholarly examination of and struggle against racist exploitation and exclusion at home and U.S. imperialism and colonialism abroad. Though his relationship to the university was strained, his commitment to education as a primary mechanism for individual self-determination and collective democratization never wavered. Even as he explored the transformative potential of more public sites of pedagogy, he continued to produce groundbreaking studies in urban sociology, histories of the transatlantic slave trade, and his monumental Black Reconstruction in America, as well as several now-classic works in the field of education and numerous works of poetry and fiction (including five novels).

Take Back Higher Education, 2004

Cultural studies as a field seems to have passed into the shadows of academic interests. Globaliz... more Cultural studies as a field seems to have passed into the shadows of academic interests. Globalization and political economy have become the privileged concerns of left academics as we move into the new millennium. While we do not want to suggest that the newfound interest in globalization and political economy is unwarranted, we do want to stress that cultural studies’s long-standing interest in the interrelationship between power, politics, and culture is much too important at present to be dismissed as the passage of another academic fashion. Matters of agency, consciousness, pedagogy, rhetoric, and persuasion are central to any public discourse about politics, not to mention education itself. In fact, as we argue below, culture is a central sphere of politics; it is the one site that offers both a language of critique and possibility, a sphere in which matters of economy, institutional power relations, globalization, and politics can be recognized, critically understood, and collectively engaged. Hence, the promise of cultural studies, especially as a fundamental aspect of higher education, does not reside in a false opposition between culture and material relations of power, but in a project that bridges these concerns as part of a larger transformative and democratic politics in which matters of pedagogy and agency play a central role.

Take Back Higher Education, 2004

A strong military arm of the state, a democratic one in particular, is, as one hears everywhere, ... more A strong military arm of the state, a democratic one in particular, is, as one hears everywhere, the prerequisite for a flourishing economy and a guarantor of its internal order and its sovereignty towards the outside. Even if this were true, it is very easy to deceive oneself: military is to democracy as fire is to water .... If democracy demands the individual's will, the military demands his subordination. If, in the former case, all power originates from the people, then, in the latter, all orders come from above.

Take Back Higher Education, 2004

This book represents our desire to offer some speculation about and critical questioning of two e... more This book represents our desire to offer some speculation about and critical questioning of two events in post-civil rights America. The first has to do with the current state of American political culture: the declining interest in and cynicism about mainstream national politics, its decidedly negative impact on the democratic process, and how such entrenched dispositions might be reversed. Emptied of any substantial content, democracy appears imperiled because individuals are unable to translate their privately suffered misery into broadly shared public concerns and collective action. Civic engagement now appears impotent and public values have become expendable as a result of the growing power of multinational corporations to shape the content of most mainstream media. Political exhaustion and impoverished intellectual visions are fed by the increasingly popular assumption that there are no alternatives to the present state of affairs.1 For many people today, citizenship is about the act of buying and selling commodities (including political candidates), rather than broadening the scope of their freedoms and rights in order to expand the operations of a substantive democracy. Market values, coupled with a resurgent bigotry, undercut the possibility of a language in which vital social institutions can be defended as a public good.

Take Back Higher Education, 2004

The ascendancy of neoliberalism and corporate culture in every aspect of American life not only c... more The ascendancy of neoliberalism and corporate culture in every aspect of American life not only consolidates economic power in the hands of the few; it also aggressively attempts to break the power of unions, decouple income from productivity, subordinate the needs of society to the market, reduce civic education to job training, and render public services and amenities an unconscionable luxury. But it does more. It thrives on a culture of cynicism, insecurity, and despair. Conscripts in a relentless campaign for personal responsibility, Americans are now convinced that they have little to hope for—or gain from—the government, nonprofit public organizations, democratic associations, public and higher education, or other nongovernmental social agencies. With few exceptions, the project of democratizing public institutions and goods has fallen into disrepute in the popular imagination as the logic of the market and increasing militarization of public life undermine the most basic social solidarities and blunt intellectual curiosity and conviction. The consequences include not only a state representative of a few elite, corporate interests, but also the transformation of a democratic republic into a national security state. Philosopher Susan Buck-Morss comments on this loss of democratic control: But there is another United States over which I have no control, because it is by definition not a democracy, not a republic. I am referring to the national security state that is called into existence with the sovereign pronouncement of a “state emergency” and that generates a wild zone of power, barbaric and violent, operating without democratic oversight, in order to combat an “enemy” that threatens the existence not merely and not mainly of its citizens, but of its sovereignty. The paradox is that this undemocratic state claims absolute power over the citizens of a free and democratic nation.3

British Journal of Educational Studies, 2011

Policy Futures in Education, 2003

In many recent explanations of the rise of modernity, Scotland has been cited as an illustration ... more In many recent explanations of the rise of modernity, Scotland has been cited as an illustration of the relationship between the growth of mass education and the influence of the Enlightenment faith in reason and progress. This article questions the prevailing account of the advance of education in Scotland by highlighting the impact upon it of utopian concepts of education and society from which Scottish Enlightenment thought recoiled. Originating in the radical theology of the Scottish Reformation, the utopian theme in Scottish culture has been a constant source of renewal and reproach, testing the limits of Enlightenment consensus and positing compelling alternatives to dominant educational practice.

El neoliberalismo en el que nos encontramos actualmente es la última etapa del capitalismo, la má... more El neoliberalismo en el que nos encontramos actualmente es la última etapa del capitalismo, la más despiadada, y se caracteriza por una crisis económica, social y democrática latente. Las sociedades actuales, viven en una guerra constante, donde el racismo, la globalización y las injusticias sociales son las protagonistas indiscutibles de nuestros días. Frente a esta situación, la educación tiene el poder de luchar contra esta realidad. Es importante ser conscientes del fundamental papel político que tiene la educación, ya que moldea la forma en que los futuros ciudadanos piensan, desean y actúan. La educación tiene en sus manos la creación de intelectuales que luchen contra la opresión y puedan ser agentes de cambio social. La educación superior es, por ello, una de las pocas esferas públicas que tienen la posibilidad de mantener una cultura democrática real y cambiar así el rumbo de la historiaNowadays we find ourselves in a socio-political situation called neoliberalism, the last...

Izquierdas

Resumen: El discurso del autoritarismo y los ecos de un pasado fascista vuelven a resurgir. En es... more Resumen: El discurso del autoritarismo y los ecos de un pasado fascista vuelven a resurgir. En este contexto, la educación superior, más allá de favorecer prácticas de libertad, se ha transformado en una institución instrumentalizada en pos de reproducir y legitimar dinámicas de dominación. Este artículo cuestiona esta forma reaccionaria de la acción educativa y pedagógica, particularmente en su versión neoliberal. A la vez, explora cómo la educación puede proveer de los fundamentos teóricos y prácticos para repensar su propio propósito, junto a la naturaleza misma de la política. En este sentido, se plantea que la educación y la política son dimensiones completamente inseparables.

Thinking About Schools, 2018

Dangerous Thinking in the Age of the New Authoritarianism, 2015

Analyzes the increasing attack on higher education, dissent, and academic freedom largely from a ... more Analyzes the increasing attack on higher education, dissent, and academic freedom largely from a range of neoliberal interests.

El objetivo del presente capítulo es analizar el potencial tránsito desde una pedagogía de la cla... more El objetivo del presente capítulo es analizar el potencial tránsito desde una pedagogía de la clausura a una pedagogía de las posibilidades en los sistemas educativos y sociales del presente. Con el foco en la Educación Superior, el presente trabajo esta dividido en tres apartados. En el primero se analiza cómo el orden educativo neoliberal ha estructurado una pedagogía hegemónica de carácter clausurativa, es decir, que tiene como función principal naturalizar los principios sobre los que se soporta dicho orden e impedir la imaginación de un proyecto educativo y social distinto al existente. Tras este diagnóstico, se propone avanzar en la construcción de una narrativa político-pedagógica que permita enfrentar, interrumpir y transformar la clausura que intenta el discurso educativo dominante. Para ello, en el segundo apartado, se proponen dos dimensiones que permitirían, en las antípodas del modelo hegemónico, erigir una pedagogía de la posibilidad. Es decir, un tipo de educación que...

Gewährt wird ein nicht exklusives, nicht übertragbares, persönliches und beschränktes Recht auf N... more Gewährt wird ein nicht exklusives, nicht übertragbares, persönliches und beschränktes Recht auf Nutzung dieses Dokuments. Dieses Dokument ist ausschließlich für den persönlichen, nicht-kommerziellen Gebrauch bestimmt. Die Nutzung stellt keine Übertragung des Eigentumsrechts an diesem Dokument dar und gilt vorbehaltlich der folgenden Einschränkungen: Auf sämtlichen Kopien dieses Dokuments müssen alle Urheberrechtshinweise und sonstigen Hinweise auf gesetzlichen Schutz beibehalten werden. Sie dürfen dieses Dokument nicht in irgendeiner Weise abändern, noch dürfen Sie dieses Dokument für öffentliche oder kommerzielle Zwecke vervielfältigen, öffentlich ausstellen, aufführen, vertreiben oder anderweitig nutzen. We grant a non-exclusive, non-transferable, individual and limited right to using this document. This document is solely intended for your personal, non-commercial use. Use of this document does not include any transfer of property rights and it is conditional to the following limitations: All of the copies of this documents must retain all copyright information and other information regarding legal protection. You are not allowed to alter this document in any way, to copy it for public or commercial purposes, to exhibit the document in public, to perform, distribute or otherwise use the document in public. Mit der Verwendung dieses Dokuments erkennen Sie die Nutzungsbedingungen an. By using this particular document, you accept the above-stated conditions of use.

Teachers College Record: The Voice of Scholarship in Education, 1986

Conversations on Global Citizenship Education, 2021

This paper focuses on the celebration of ignorance in the media and other cultural apparatuses an... more This paper focuses on the celebration of ignorance in the media and other cultural apparatuses and how this process functions as a form of depoliticization preparing the way for an authoritarian society in the United States

Analyzes a number of liberal theorists who suggests that Trump is touching upon substantial worki... more Analyzes a number of liberal theorists who suggests that Trump is touching upon substantial working class issues while under emphasizing his hate filled racist discourse