Helen Pluckrose is a British author and cultural writer known for critiques of Critical Social Justice and promotion of

liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

ethics, most notably in the

grievance studies affair The grievance studies affair, also referred to as the "Sokal Squared" scandal, was the project of a team of three authors—Peter Boghossian, James A. Lindsay, and Helen Pluckrose—to highlight what they saw as poor scholarship and eroding cri ...

Education

Pluckrose completed a degree in English literature at the

University of East London , mottoeng = Knowledge and the fulfilment of vows , established = 1898 – West Ham Technical Institute1952 – West Ham College of Technology1970 – North East London Polytechnic1989 – Polytechnic of East London ...

and a master's degree in early modern studies at

Queen Mary University of London , mottoeng = With united powers , established = 1785 – The London Hospital Medical College1843 – St Bartholomew's Hospital Medical College1882 – Westfield College1887 – East London College/Queen Mary College , type = Public researc ...

, with a particular focus on "the ways in which medieval women negotiated the Christian narrative".

Career

Social care

From the age of 17 to 34, Pluckrose worked in social care mostly providing for the personal care needs of elderly people and those with physical and learning disabilities.

Grievance studies affair

Thumbnail of video Academics expose corruption in Grievance Studies

Alongside James A. Lindsay and

Peter Boghossian Peter Gregory Boghossian (; born July 25, 1966) is an American philosopher and pedagogist. Born in Boston, he was a non-tenure track assistant professor of philosophy at Portland State University for ten years, and his areas of academic focus i ...

, Pluckrose was involved in the 2017–18

(also referred to as "Sokal Squared" in reference to the 1996

Sokal affair The Sokal affair, also called the Sokal hoax, was a demonstrative scholarly publishing sting, scholarly hoax performed by Alan Sokal, a physics professor at New York University and University College London. In 1996, Sokal submitted an article t ...

), a project which saw the group submitting a number of bogus academic papers to peer-reviewed journals in cultural, gender, queer and race studies, to see if they would get published. The authors stated their goal as highlighting poor scholarship and eroding criteria in some academic fields, particularly those influenced by postmodern philosophy and

critical theory A critical theory is any approach to social philosophy that focuses on society and culture to reveal, critique and challenge power structures. With roots in sociology and literary criticism, it argues that social problems stem more from soci ...

. Despite criticism of the exposé as a "hoax" and "coordinated attack from the right", Pluckrose and her colleagues describe themselves as "left-leaning liberals".

''Areo Magazine''

From 2018 to 2021, Pluckrose was editor-in-chief of ''Areo Magazine'', an opinion and analysis digital magazine exploring "a variety of perspectives compatible with broadly liberal and humanist values". Pluckrose stepped down as editor in April, 2021.

''Cynical Theories''

In 2020, Pluckrose released a non-fiction book, '' Cynical Theories'', co-authored with James A. Lindsay and published by Pitchstone Publishing.

Counterweight

Pluckrose founded Counterweight as a reaction to the growth of implicit bias training and other forms of what Pluckrose calls "critical social justice ideology" in the workplace. The group describes itself as a "non-partisan, grassroots movement advocating for liberal concepts of social justice". Counterweight launched an online advice service in January 2021, which Pluckrose described as "

Citizens Advice Citizens AdviceCitizens Advice is the operating name of The National Association of Citizens Advice Bureaux which is the umbrella charity for a wider network of local advice centres. The abbreviation CitA is sometimes used to refer to this nation ...

for the culture wars". The group published a video which, according to ''The Telegraph'', argued that "woke" activism unfairly judges people by their gender, race and sex, and pledged to provide resources such as mental health support and "expert guidance". Pluckrose stopped actively working for Counterweight in 2022 but continues to support the cause.

Personal life

Pluckrose lives in London with her husband David, a forklift driver, and their child.

References

External links

''Areo'' magazine
'About' {{DEFAULTSORT:Pluckrose, Helen Year of birth missing (living people) Living people 21st-century British non-fiction writers Alumni of Queen Mary University of London Alumni of the University of East London English magazine editors English women non-fiction writers Women magazine editors 21st-century English women 21st-century English people Hoaxers