THE POLITICS OF RESPECTABILITY AND CULTURE

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  • Francis Benson Charley Lecturer, Rev., Institute of Public Administration and Management (IPAM), University of Sierra Leone, Sierra Leone

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https://doi.org/10.46827/ejsss.v10i1.1738

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social control##common.commaListSeparator## shame##common.commaListSeparator## guilt##common.commaListSeparator## marginalization##common.commaListSeparator## culture##common.commaListSeparator## social hierarchy##common.commaListSeparator## critical race theory##common.commaListSeparator## and feminism for politics of respectability

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Studying a phenomenon that has been used to defend social and economic injustices, this abstract looks at the politics of respectability and culture. In order to uphold dominant ideas and silence marginalized voices, respectability politics asserts that some attitudes, behaviors, and lifestyles are morally better to others. This abstract examines respectability via a critical lens, showing how it creates shame and guilt, suppresses disadvantaged voices, and upholds societal structures. The abstract posits that the politics of respectability serve as a social control mechanism to uphold power imbalances and enforce prevailing norms, drawing on feminist, critical race, and queer theories. Our goal should be to create a society that is more equal and inclusive by opposing and subverting respectability politics.

 

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##submission.authorBiography##

  • ##submission.authorWithAffiliation##

    Reverend Francis Benson Charley is a full-time Lecturer/Faculty at the Institute of Public Administration and Management (IPAM-USL) in the Department of Public Administration and Leadership and Sustainable Development. Rev. Charley also serves as Supervisor of the Master in Research and Public Policy (MRPP) Program at the Institute of Public Administration and Management IPAM-USL. Additionally, Rev Charley serves as the Chairman of the Welfare Committee for the Faculty of Leadership and Governance of IPAM-USL. It is good to note that Rev Charley has been an ordained Elder of the United Methodist Church Sierra Leone Area since 1999. After his ordination, Rev Charley has held many responsible leadership positions in the country and outside.

    • Circuit Minister, District Superintendent and Manager of UMC Schools.
    • Dean of Cabinet of the United Methodist Church Sierra Leone.
    • Currently, Rev Charley serves in the office of Director of Leadership and Training United Methodist Church Sierra Leone.

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##submissions.published##

2024-06-08

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##issue.vol## 10 ##issue.no## 1 (2024)

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