A Unified Moral Framework
The core logic of Oppressionism is a comprehensive and self-reinforcing worldview built upon a coherent internal blueprint. It interprets all social relations and institutions through a single lens: the structural division of society into oppressors and oppressed. Beneath this vision lies the foundational claim that power is the primary reality shaping human life. Rooted in post-structuralist thought, it holds that all relationships are structured by domination and subordination. Power, in this view, is systemic and diffuse, flowing through norms, language, laws, and cultural practices. Because it is omnipresent, Oppressionism rejects the idea of neutrality or institutional impartiality. Disengagement or inaction are treated as moral failures, since stability itself is understood as domination made to feel natural.
Identity as the Map of Power
Within this moral geometry, identity serves as the map of power. Group membership, defined by race, gender, sexuality, and other categories, determines moral position and perspective. This structure gives rise to standpoint epistemology, the belief that knowledge and moral authority flow from social identity rather than from universal reason or evidence. The experiences of marginalized groups are considered epistemically privileged, granting them moral authority because they perceive both their own world and that of the dominant group. Conversely, claims of objectivity or neutrality are dismissed as veils for power, a phenomenon philosopher Charles Mills described as “white ignorance.” Through the concept of intersectionality, this framework refines authority further by granting higher legitimacy to those who embody multiple intersecting forms of disadvantage.
Privilege and Moral Responsibility
The moral obligations of dominant groups are defined through privilege theory, which treats unearned advantage as a form of invisible capital. Possessing privilege imposes a moral duty to act against one’s own structural advantages. Justice, in this system, is redefined as the reversal of injustice. It seeks not equality of opportunity but equity of outcome, achieved through the reallocation of resources, power, and recognition until historical imbalances have been neutralized. Equality thus becomes a process of continual correction rather than a fixed principle.
Language, Culture, and Perpetual Mobilization
Because language and culture are viewed as structures of power, they become the primary arenas of struggle. Words, images, and norms are treated as instruments of domination that must be exposed, revised, or removed. The battle against oppression therefore extends into every domain of meaning, including education, media, art, and even interpersonal speech. By framing power as endlessly self-regenerating, Oppressionism ensures that the moral project never ends. New forms of oppression are continually discovered, guaranteeing a permanent state of moral mobilization. In this way, the ideology preserves itself through the very logic of resistance and achieves resilience by design.