The Corruption of Sociology

I am often asked by readers of my columns how I survive as a sociologist.  They know that I am a conservative, whereas my discipline is extremely liberal.  In fact, it is difficult.  Most of my colleagues are neo-Marxists.  Outside of my own department, many regard me as a traitor.

Some years ago, the husband of a close associate ordered me—point blank—to stop writing for the Marietta Daily Journal.  He told me that my views did not represent sociology and therefore I should desist.  My Ph.D. in the field was canceled out by my apostasy.

 Similarly, when I attend conferences, I have literally been told to shut up.  Instead of being heard out, I am treated to a lecture.  Academics, who do not know me, take it upon themselves to reeducate me.

With the advent of President Donald Trump, things have gotten worse.  My wife (who is also a sociologist) and I usually enjoy attending the Southern Sociology Society (SSS) meetings in New Orleans.  We like the town, but are having second thoughts about going.

What triggered this decision was the “call for papers” put out by the organization.  Professional societies, such as the SSS, are supposed to promote science.  They are intended to be places where scholars get together to share their results.  This cross-fertilization is meant to advance our collective understanding.

It should go without saying that a true science is empirical.  Neutral observations of the real world are expected to be confirmed—or disconfirmed—by other neutral observations.  Bias is supposed to be weeded out as a source of error and confusion.  This way the truth can emerge.

But those days are gone.  No longer does the SSS see this as it mission.  Today the goal is to promote a political agenda.  In addition, no one should be surprised that this is a left wing agenda.  Political correctness has so corrupted the social sciences that even mainstream sociologists have become activists dedicated to destroying Trump.

If this sounds extreme, let me quote an extended passage from the SSS’s call for papers.  The reader can judge for him or herself the purpose of a conference entitled “Racial Theory, Analysis, and Politics in TrumpAmerica.”

The call begins, “We want all Trump-related sociological analysis to be the focus as our nation…needs answers and explanations.  How did a patently unqualified person like Trump get elected?  Why did we not predict his election?  Why did so many whites support him.”

It should be evident that this statement is harshly judgmental.  The outcomes of the desired studies have been predetermined.  Conservative explanations are not welcome.  Neither are dispassionate analyses.

But let me continue.  “Is Trump’s election a short-term development or a political egg that has been hatching for a long time?  What is our analysis of Trump’s core supporters?  Were [they] just expressing their ‘class anxieties’.  What are the politics needed to undo TrumpAmerica?”

Bear in mind that these are southern sociologists.  Bear in mind as well that the current president of the SSS is from Duke University.  These are not a bunch of kooks from a marginal association.  They epitomize the deep-seated attitudes of academics in one of the most conservative parts of the country.

One last line that stands out in this call for papers is, “Will Democrats cave into the idea that to get back to the White House they need to stop relying on ‘identity politics’?”  The import of this injunction is that sociologists must defend identity politics.

Identity politics, of course, stresses the special needs of “minorities” such as blacks, women, gays, and the poor.  The idea is thus not to investigate the truth, but to find ways to help those our culture exploits.  In other words, the truth is known; it is just a matter of applying it.

This, however, is standard Marxist thinking.  Marx, having discovered what he believed to be the driving force of history, told capitalists they needed to stand aside or be run over.  Furthermore, he, and his associates, would organize a proletarian revolution to see that they did.

The folks at the SSS have the identical mindset.  Only now their archenemy is that capitalistic icon Donald Trump.  He is clearly in their sights.

Melvyn L. Fein, Ph.D.

Professor of Sociology

Kennesaw State University