Power, Patriarchy, and Collective Resistance
Religious fundamentalism is not an excess of faith but a political project that weaponizes doctrine to discipline bodies, suppress dissent, and entrench hierarchies. From Christian dominionism in the United States to Hindu nationalism in India and Salafist movements in the Middle East, fundamentalists share an insistence on absolute textual authority, moral certainty, and social control. Their rise is intertwined with neoliberal austerity, geopolitical conflict, and the disorientation produced by globalization—conditions that make simple, militant answers feel attractive in a world of precarity.
Fundamentalism as Structural Violence
Fundamentalist leaders present themselves as guardians of tradition while manufacturing cultural panic about modernity, feminism, and pluralism. They convert theological disagreement into existential threat narratives, justifying coercive tactics that range from restrictive laws to armed insurgency. Government data show state violence against religious minorities in 95 countries and lethal force in 20 of them as recently as 2018. Social hostilities are also intensifying: nearly 30 % of countries registered high levels of religiously motivated violence in 2016, up a decade earlier.
Patriarchy at the Core
Across traditions, fundamentalists police gender and sexuality in strikingly similar ways. A global survey of feminist activists found that the top five harms linked to fundamentalism all revolve around limiting women’s autonomy and LGBTQ+ rights. Quantitative studies confirm the mechanism: higher fundamentalism scores predict stronger endorsement of hostile and benevolent sexism among both Muslim and Christian youth in Europe. Where fundamentalists gain legislative power, they pursue rollbacks on reproductive rights, marital consent, and anti-discrimination statutes—material assaults that disproportionately endanger queer, disabled, and racial-minority women.
Related expertise: LGBTQ+ Issues & Inclusion and Workplace Misconduct & Ethics
Economic Roots and Exploits
Far from being a pre-modern throwback, fundamentalism flourishes under late capitalism. Scholars link its growth to the insecurities of debt economies, precarious labor, and the punitive welfare cuts of neoliberal states, which create fertile ground for identity-based certainties. In many regions fundamentalist organizations also operate vast shadow welfare networks—schools, charities, health clinics—turning basic survival needs into recruitment pipelines while resisting unions and feminist organizing. The result is a cycle where economic precarity feeds religious militancy, which in turn reinforces market orthodoxies that keep workers disempowered.
Related service: Employee Experience Design for institutions confronting fundamentalist influence over workplace culture
Violence and Democratic Erosion
Religious fundamentalists are over-represented among violent extremist factions: religion was a primary motivator in 66.5 % of terrorist incidents worldwide in 2019. Yet the majority of their harm is legislative and cultural, enacted through blasphemy laws, curriculum bans, and the capture of international human-rights forums to stall gender-equality treaties. Political scientists warn that once fundamentalist parties secure parliamentary footholds, liberal democracies face durable setbacks in minority rights and press freedom.
Community Impacts and Spiritual Wounds
Survivors describe spiritual abuse—leadership claiming divine infallibility, enforced isolation, threats of eternal damnation—as a distinct trauma that erodes identity and trust. These tactics mirror coercive control patterns seen in high-control groups and intimate-partner violence, producing complex PTSD, autoimmune disorders, and suicidal ideation at rates comparable to other forms of chronic abuse. Healing therefore requires both somatic care and critical consciousness that locates pain within broader systems of oppression.
See also: High-Control Group Recovery and Trauma-Informed Practices
My Approach: Liberation-Centered Analysis and Support
As a sociologist and survivor, I interrogate how race, class, gender, and empire converge in fundamentalist projects. My work blends critical theory, liberation theology, and community organizing to support:
- Survivor-Centered Coaching – Narrative reconstruction, boundary work, and intersectional identity rebuilding.
- Institutional Consulting – Audits of policies and curricula that embed fundamentalist dogma in schools, nonprofits, or workplaces.
- Restorative Accountability – Designing forums where communities confront harm, demand reparations, and prevent recidivism, in partnership with my Restorative Practices offerings.
Building Collective Resistance
Fundamentalism thrives when progressive movements fracture. Research across 70 countries shows that the strongest predictor of gender-equality gains is an autonomous women’s movement capable of confronting religious backlash. Effective counter-strategies therefore include cross-faith feminist alliances, labor unions resisting theological union-busting, and art / digital storytelling that reclaims sacred texts for liberation.
I collaborate with grassroots organizers to:
- Map power relations between state, capital, and religious authorities.
- Train rank-and-file members in critical media literacy to de-mythologize extremist propaganda.
- Facilitate interfaith dialogues that center marginalized voices rather than clerical elites.
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The Invitation
Religious fundamentalism hijacks the sacred to legitimize domination, but communities have always generated counter-theologies of justice, mutual aid, and joy. If you are ready to expose the power structures behind dogma and cultivate spaces where spirit and liberation converge, let’s build that future together.