Mobilizing the Wealthy: Doing 'Privilege Work' and Challenging the Roots of Inequality
| Autor: | Zhi Tang, Erynn E. Beaton, Sandra Rothenberg, Maureen A. Scully |
|---|---|
| Rok vydání: | 2017 |
| Předmět: |
Inequality
media_common.quotation_subject 05 social sciences 050109 social psychology CONTEST Consolidation (business) Economic inequality Legitimation 0502 economics and business Development economics Business Management and Accounting (miscellaneous) 0501 psychology and cognitive sciences Sociology 050203 business & management Social Sciences (miscellaneous) media_common |
| Zdroj: | Business & Society. 57:1075-1113 |
| ISSN: | 1552-4205 0007-6503 |
| DOI: | 10.1177/0007650317698941 |
| Popis: | Wealthy individuals stand to gain materially from economic inequality and, moreover, have shaped many organizational and societal practices that perpetuate economic inequality. Thus, they are unlikely allies in the effort to remedy economic inequality. In this article, however, we study the mobilization of a small group of wealthy activists who join underprivileged allies to expose and contest the root causes of wealth consolidation; they offer an instructive alternative to “philanthrocapitalism,” whereby the wealthy give after extreme accumulation. Our study contributes to the growing literature on inequality and organizations by recognizing how inequality is reproduced through organizations, cognizant that efforts to halt this reproduction will likely be contested by the wealthy. Our study examines how advocacy by the wealthy may be challenging, but it may garner attention because it is unexpected. We derive the concept of “privilege work” from our observations of an often awkward and fraught process that enables the wealthy to engage with their own privilege, use their insider knowledge of wealth accumulation as a lever for change, and work respectfully with underprivileged allies rather than invoking superior status. |
| Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
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