Is Social Justice Driven by Emotion or Reason?

Is Social Justice Driven by Emotion or Reason?

Tuesday, 08 July 2014 09:53 By Kate Aronoff

Read the full article at Truthout.org: click here

"It follows that regardless of the inherent logic of a concept, the logic by which a given person finds that logic compelling is rooted in their personal experience."

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"The study, then, presents a dual challenge for organizers looking to communicate with the broader public: engage self-interest in a given issue and then—crucially—provide those activated with the means to tap into the logical, reasonable and arguably strategic parts of their brain. Why do so many people sign petitions or attend demonstrations and then drop out of movements entirely? The study seems to suggest is that the appeal is working, but the follow-up isn’t.

Unfortunately, there is no magic formula for effective follow-up. On the local level, at least, forging strong relationships is hard to beat. In my own student organizing, we were most effective when we equipped as many leaders as possible with the tools they needed to run their own projects that fit within our most basic strategic vision and theory of change. As the study shows, people want to act strategically. It’s just up to organizers to give them the tools and framework to do so."


Aronoff, Kate. "Is Social Justice Driven by Emotion or Reason?" Truthout.org 8 July 2014. Web. http://truth-out.org/news/item/24833-is-social-justice-driven-by-emotion-or-reason.

Keywords + Tag = Social Justice | Truthout | Kate Aronoff | Emotion | Reason | University of Chicago | Erin Brodwin | Saul Alinsky | Swarthmore College