The Cult of True Victimhood: From the War on Welfare to the War on TerrorCondemnations of "victim politics" are a familiar feature of American public life. Politicians and journalists across the ideological spectrum eagerly denounce "victimism." Accusations of "playing the victim" have become a convenient way to ridicule or condemn. President George W. Bush even blamed an Islamic "culture of victimization" for 9/11. The Cult of True Victimhood shows how the panic about domestic and foreign victims has transformed American politics, warping the language we use to talk about suffering and collective responsibility. With forceful and lively prose, Alyson Cole investigates the ideological underpinnings, cultural manifestations, and political consequences of anti-victimism in an array of contexts, including race relations, the feminist movement, conservative punditry, and the U.S. legal system. Being a victim, she contends, is no longer a matter of injuries or injustices endured, but a stigmatizing judgment of individual character. Those who claim victim status are cast as shamefully passive or cynically manipulative. Even the brutalized Central Park jogger came forth to insist that she is not a victim, but a survivor. Offering a fresh perspective on major themes in American politics, Cole demonstrates how this new use of "victim" to derogate underlies seemingly disparate social and political debates from the welfare state, criminal justice, and abortion to the war on terror. |
Contents
The AntiVictimist | 20 |
AntiVictim Feminism | 47 |
Two Faces of Victimhood | 79 |
Blaming Victims and Victims | 109 |
Other editions - View all
The Cult of True Victimhood: From the War on Welfare to the War on Terror Alyson Manda Cole No preview available - 2007 |
Common terms and phrases
Abuse Excuse African Americans anti anti-Semitism anti-victimism anti-victimists argues attack AVFers behavior blaming the victim Bush Bush's Camille Paglia campaign Chapter character civil rights conception contemporary crime criminal critics critique Cult of True culture D'Souza Denfeld Dershowitz difference difference feminism Dinesh D'Souza discourse example female femi Feminine Mystique Fire with Fire freedom Friedan gender groups Hoff Sommers Holocaust Ibid idea identity politics ideology individuals injustice innocence instance Jewish Judaism Julius Lester Kaminer liberal Lovesong masculine moral Nation of Victims oppression Paglia problem psychological race racial racism radical rape victims Redstockings responsibility rights movement Roiphe role Ryan Ryan's self-esteem sexual Shelby Steele social society suffering Sykes terror theories therapeutic tion True Victimhood University Press victim blaming victim claims victim feminism victim feminists victim politics victim precipitation victim status victimist Victimology welfare Wendy Kaminer Wolf women women's movement York