Having navigated through ten posts dissecting the arguments presented by Musa al-Gharbi in his book We Have Never Been Woke, it’s high time to transition into my critique of his assertions. In this installment, I will delve into al-Gharbi’s broader concepts—specifically, the phenomenon of “Awokenings” and the motivations driving “woke” symbolic capitalists to advocate for policies that often undermine the very poor and vulnerable they claim to support.
Elite Overproduction
Al-Gharbi characterizes Awokenings as epochs where members of what he terms the symbolic capitalist class seize control of social justice movements to bolster or secure their own status. A pivotal element in this dynamic is what he calls “elite overproduction”—the notion that there exists a surplus of individuals aspiring to elite status compared to the actual capacity of elites to exist.
While I concur with al-Gharbi’s depiction of elite overproduction, I’d quibble over the terminology: it feels more like a classic supply and demand issue rather than an outright surplus. When al-Gharbi references the surge of elites preceding the first Great Awokening (during the 1920s and 1930s), he cites the rise in college education rates, historically perceived as the golden ticket to the elite. Yet, while the relative increase was striking (the number of PhDs quadrupled!), in absolute terms, it was minuscule—rising from 0.03% to 0.12% of the population. Alone, this wouldn’t have been consequential without the backdrop of the Great Depression, which decimated demand for such elites.
Today’s oversupply of degree-holders does resonate with our current landscape. Many from my generation have been sold the narrative that a college degree guarantees a successful career, only to find themselves adrift in a sea of underemployment. Attending college was once an exclusive path to the upper echelons; however, flooding the system has led to degree inflation, rendering the once-coveted diploma less valuable and leaving graduates grappling with hefty student loans and dismal job prospects.
This discontent was palpably expressed during the Occupy Wall Street protests. I recall a story about an office worker overseeing the encampment who tossed job applications for menial retail positions from a window, sending a clear, albeit scornful, statement to the protesters: “Just get a job!” The response from the demonstrators, however, was telling—they weren’t just aimless job seekers but college-educated individuals who believed their degrees exempted them from such unfulfilling work. They felt a betrayal of the implicit social contract that promised upward mobility through education, only to find themselves in a precarious situation post-graduation.
While al-Gharbi’s focus is primarily the United States, it’s worth noting that Awokenings have arisen globally, often with a similar cast: predominantly well-off, educated elites. This sense of insecurity among these societal strata has been documented by Martin Gurri in his book The Revolt of the Public (2014), which coincided with the latest Awokening.
Gurri’s analysis resonates with al-Gharbi’s observations, emphasizing that these movements are chiefly driven by the upper-middle classes—tech-savvy, connected, and often young. The irony lies in the fact that many of these participants, despite living in an era of unparalleled prosperity, perceive themselves as victims of a deeply flawed system. For instance, Gurri notes that in Spain, amidst a post-dictatorship world, GDP per capita soared, yet the “indignados” protesters were convinced they were facing the most oppressive government ever, even as they benefited from a plethora of social services and economic advancements.
Thus, elite overproduction emerges as a compelling framework for understanding these dynamics. Social justice activism, as al-Gharbi illustrates, is predominantly an elite endeavor.
In my forthcoming post, I plan to explore how established theories regarding incentives and political coalitions could further illuminate al-Gharbi’s insights.
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