The Analytic of Oppression

• In Event: AERA Poster Session Thursday 4:15pm
  In Poster Session: Critical Examination of Race, Ethnicity, Class, and Gender Poster Session

Abstract

This theoretical paper introduces the Analytic of Oppression, a framework for examining how affective, disciplinary, and epistemic mechanisms reproduce oppression across educational contexts. Integrating abolitionist thought, Critical Race Theory, Black feminist epistemologies, and contemplative paradigms, the analytic operationalizes oppression as fractal social formation sustained through patterned practices such as surveillance, moral regulation, and social devaluation. We argue for “relational rigor,” a methodological ethic that resists de-relationalizing social phenomena, centers historical specificity, and names systemic harm. This framework invites empirical research that exposes and dismantles interlocking oppressions in education while advancing transformative, justice-oriented futures.

Authors

• Dennis Williams, University of Virginia

• Kristyn Wilson, University of Virginia