Oppression & resistance dialectically envelop everyday life for both the privileged & the oppressed The disenfranchised live under regimes in which repression ranges from brutal to institutionally subtle The privileged socially reproduce their rule through ideology that justifies & policy that institutionalizes subjugation However rejecting depression detachment & disaffection that emerges from surviving ruling-class regimes many previously dispirited instead choose defiance They engage in subjectivity struggles by crafting critical consciousness refusing to be dupes to ideology that represents them as inferior They undertake social struggles demanding policy that dismantles institutional discrimination & that enhances opportunities for learning & achievement The exploited as best as they can in regimes of ruling class & white male supremacy reconstruct their selves & it is hoped transform society The qualitative studies that comprise this edited collection present a structure-&-agency perspective broadly defined that constitutes the best sociological lens through which to understand oppression & resistance Contributors interrogate various aspects of oppression & resistance from the personal to the institutional exploring situations in which the structure of oppression was insurmountable & illustrating cases in which agency was able to transform either individual or group identity