Power and Resistance, 6th ed.

Critical Thinking about Canadian Social Issues

edited by Wayne Antony, Jessica Antony, and Les Samuelson

“The perfect teaching tool to introduce students to some of the pressing challenges facing contemporary Canada and the world.”

This edition has been replaced by Power and Resistance, 7th Edition

About the book

How do we make sense of the social problems that continue to plague Canadian society? Our understanding of issues such as poverty, racism, violence, homophobia, crime and pollution stems from our view of how society is structured. From the dominant neoliberal perspective, social problems arise from individuals making poor choices. From a critical perspective, however, these social troubles are caused by structural social inequalities. Disparities in economic, social and political power — that is, relations of power based on class, race, gender and sexual orientation — are the central structural element of capitalist, patriarchal, colonialist societies.

The contributors to Power and Resistance use this critical perspective to explore Canadian social issues such as poverty, colonialism, homophobia, violence against women, climate change and so on. This sixth edition adds chapters on the corporatization of higher education, the lethal impacts of colonialism, democracy, the social determinants of health, drug policy and sexual violence on campus.

What people are saying

Peter Ove, Camosun College
The perfect teaching tool to introduce students to some of the pressing challenges facing contemporary Canada and the world

Authors

Wayne Antony

Wayne Antony (he/him) is a publisher at Fernwood Publishing. He is a founding member of the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives–Manitoba (CCPA-MB) and a board member since its inception in 1997. He has worked with other Winnipeg political activist organizations, the Socialist Education Centre and Thin Ice. Wayne also taught sociology at the University of Winnipeg for eighteen years. He is co-author of three reports on the state of public services in Manitoba (for CCAP-MB) and is co-editor of six editions of Power and Resistance: Critical Thinking About Canadian Social Issues, co-editor of Citizens or Consumers? Social Policy in a Market Society and Capitalism Rebooted? Work and Welfare in the New Economy (both with Dave Broad), and co-editor (with Julie Guard) of Bankruptcies and Bailouts.

Jessica Antony

Jessica Antony (she/her) is a freelance writer, editor and educator. She has a master’s degree in media studies from Concordia University and spent a decade working as a managing editor in the book publishing industry. In addition to writing and editing for clients and authors, she facilitates workshops on a variety of communication topics and teaches a writing course at the University of Winnipeg. She was the co-editor of the sixth edition of Power and Resistance: Critical Thinking About Canadian Social Issues and has written personal essays and articles about body politics, community arts and arts funding for CBC.

Les Samuelson

Les Samuelson teaches sociology at the University of Saskatchewan. He has an active interest in social justice initiatives, especially at the community level. His specific research interests include justice reform, especially as it pertains to Aboriginal people, and international crime, justice, and human rights.

: Social Problems and Social Power (Wayne Antony, Les Samuelson and Jessica Antony)
: Matters of the State Still Matter (Murray Knuttila)
: Death by Poverty: The Lethal Impacts of Colonialism (Pamela Palmater)
: Keeping Canada White: Immigration Enforcement in Canada (Wendy Chan)
: Crime as a Social Problem: Social Inequality and Justice (James Popham and Les Samuelson)
: Persistent Poverty in Canada (Jim Silver)
: Embodied Oppression: The Social Determinants of Health (Elizabeth McGibbon)
: Occupy Democracy: Exploring Democracy as a Relationship (Dennis Pilon)
: Corporatizing Public Universities: The Transformation of Higher Education in Canada (Jamie Brownlee)
: Power, Participation and State Legitimacy in the Alberta Tar Sands: The Rise and Fall of a Democratic Mirage (Mark Hudson)
: Making Universities Safe for Women: Sexual Assault on Campus (Elizabeth Sheehy)
: Resisting Conformity: Women Talk About Their Tattoos (Jessica Antony)
: Hidden Rainbows in Plain Sight: Human Rights Discourse and Gender and Sexual Minority Youth (Tracey Peter and Catherine Taylor)
: Making Drug Use Into a Problem: The Politics of Drug Policy in Canada (Susan Boyd)
: It Begins With Food: Food as Inspiration and Imperative for Social Change (Sally Miller)
: “Twitter Revolution” or Human Revolution?: Social Media and Social Justice Activism (Leslie Shade, Normand Landry and Rhon Teruelle)
: References
: Index