Social Theory

I situate my work in critical social theory, drawing on the Frankfurt School’s of culture and power, Judith Butler’s insights on performativity, and queer theory’s critique of normativity. Consumerism, propaganda, and everyday practices reproduce domination — and liberation-centered interventions can disrupt these dynamics.

Foundations of the Frankfurt School

I begin with Max Horkheimer and Theodor Adorno’s Dialectic of Enlightenment, which argues that the Enlightenment’s promise of human emancipation inverted into a new form of domination under instrumental reason. My work is guided by the fact that organizations and personal choices are shaped by instrumental logics — efficiency metrics, productivity demands, cost–benefit analyses — that eclipse human flourishing. Together, we:

• Map how “rational” procedures serve narrow interests rather than collective well-being.
• Design alternative metrics for success that prioritize care, solidarity, and ecological sustainability.
• Craft narratives and practices that recover agency from the “culture industry” of mass-produced conformity.

One-Dimensionality and Critique of Consumerism

Herbert Marcuse’s One-Dimensional Man diagnoses how advanced capitalism absorbs dissent by commodifying rebellion—selling “rebellious” fashions, co-opting protest language, and trapping critique within market logics. I help teams and individuals:

• Uncover ways their own organizations co-opt dissent (e.g., “inclusion campaigns” that reinforce PR spin).
• Develop counter-marketing strategies rooted in genuine mutual aid rather than brand-centric appeals.
• Facilitate workshops where participants co-create non-commodified expressions of resistance—zines, pop-up forums, gift economies.

Butler and the Performativity of Norms

Judith Butler’s Gender Trouble reframes gender as performative: repeated acts that produce the appearance of a stable identity. I apply this lens to:

• Organizational cultures that enforce “professionalism” through gendered scripts—dress codes, communication styles, leadership archetypes.
• Coaching clients to experiment with subversive performances that break normative molds and expand the range of acceptable expression.
• Designing policy audits that identify and remove performative expectations—job descriptions or evaluation rubrics—that privilege narrow identities.

Queer Theory and the Politics of Knowledge

Building on Butler alongside Eve Kosofsky Sedgwick and Teresa de Lauretis, queer theory exposes how binaries (heterosexual/homosexual, normal/deviant) structure power. My praxis includes:

• Discourse workshops decoding institutional language that frames deviation as pathology.
• Co-creating inclusive epistemologies—research protocols and program evaluations that center marginalized knowledges and resist pathologizing frames.
• Facilitating intersectional analyses that reveal how race, class, and sexuality intersect in organizational practices and policy-making.

Propaganda, Media Critique, and Power

Adorno’s critique of the culture industry shows how mass media serves as propaganda, standardizing tastes and dulling critical capacities. I incorporate:

• Media ecology audits to map how corporate algorithms shape internal communications, stakeholder messaging, and public narratives.
• Training in critical consumption—cultivating habits of attention that resist algorithmic steering and value autonomy.
• Workshops where participants co-design alternative media spaces—open-source networks, peer-to-peer platforms, community radio—that privilege horizontal power relations.

Working Together: Next Steps

If you’re ready to apply critical social theory to transform your organization, practice, or research team, let’s talk.

Reach out through the Contact page to begin.

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I publish essays and toolkits on critical theory, power analysis, and collective liberation. Subscribe below to receive reflections and practical exercises directly in your inbox.