Re-sistance in the Age of Cooption by the Political Right

Abstract

This essay explores new avenues towards challenging inequity in these dark times. In these dark times, neoliberalism has coopted discourses that once challenged inequality and systems of power. Social justice, diversity, and identity politics—once powerful discourses that challenged inequality—have now been adopted by those in power to sustain neoliberalism and systemic inequalities. Using the concept of “re-sistence” rather than “resistance,” I argue for new forms of resistance. Rather than standing firm, relying upon common areas of focus, including identity politics, music educations interested in social justice might look for new forms of resistance, adapting to the changing terrain of neoliberalism and its cooption of previously subversive discourses. Using the work of musicologist Jacques Atalli’s description of noise, I explore how this has sonic aspects, and how music educators might address these issues through curriculum and music making.