In the Preface, Freire confronts two important challenges to the struggle for liberation: the fear of freedom that inhibits the oppressed from acting to liberate themselves, and the problem of sectarianism, which undermines the possibility of genuine social transformation. He addresses these in turn, noting that the ideas and observations he offers in Pedagogy of the Oppressed derive from his years of experience educating the poor and the middle-class in Latin America.

Freire notes that the oppressed are often concerned that the consciousness-raising, orconscientização, through which the oppressed come to perceive their exploitation will lead to destructive consequences. This is untrue, he asserts, since “by making it possible for people to enter the historical process as responsible Subjects, conscientização enrolls them in the search for self-affirmation and thus avoids fanaticism” (36). The oppressed’s fear of freedom is in reality a defensive measure, “an attempt to achieve security, which [seems preferable] to the risks of liberty” (36). Challenging the culture of domination means confronting the oppressor and destabilizing the tacit social agreement under which they live; this threatens the security of the oppressed, who prefer conformity to liberty.

Genuine freedom, however, is possible only when men and women embrace an existential risk.