Editor’s note: Our recent “What It’s Like” post inspired hundreds of readers to share their own thoughts. It inspired even more to share their feelings. Here’s one submission on another important initiative: The Philosatire Online Store.

by Jen Dered

Blogosphere

It will be obvious to anyone who has recently attended a philosophy conference or followed any of several popular philosophy blogs that a toxic climate holds sway. Philosophers giving talks or posting on feminist philosophy, disability, social justice, site visits, race, etc. are being asked to support their views with reasons. The tactic will be a familiar one: “I understand your claim, but have you given any reason for us to accept it?”, “Is there an argument here”, “Is there a philosophically interesting position you’re defending?”, and other completely offensive comments. They’re all too common. We are here to provide a space for those with similar experiences to talk about what it’s like to face Requirements for Evidential Support for Philosophical and Ethical Claims or Theories (RESPECT).

While we invite others to share their horror stories about being asked to justify their statements with evidence, it is at least as important to say what we at NO RESPECT are doing about it.

Initially, it was suggested that whenever such requests for evidence are presented (usually by white men, but sadly, often by women, minorities and other collaborators), those interested in social justice should jump to their feet and scream “PRIVILEGE!” at the offender. However, there were so many such occasions for screaming that the oppressed speakers were not able to finish their talks. (One particularly bad incident occurred during the keynote address at the Midwestern Society for Pluralism, when everyone in the audience started screaming at one another.) Further, it was pointed out that the ability to scream “PRIVILEGE” louder than others is itself is a kind of privilege.

So our next effort involved printing “PRIVILEGE!” t-shirts (now available for $20 at the Philosatire online store). The idea was that instead of screaming, others stand and point to their shirts when someone offensively suggests that a speaker hasn’t given any argument. While this kept disruption to a minimum, it was felt that these efforts ignored the different metrics on and degrees with which power can oppress.

So, the t-shirts (now available for $10 at the online store) were supplanted with scarlet “Phi” badges. The brilliant engineers at NO RESPECT have designed them to grow or shrink in size, in direct proportion to the levels of privilege someone has. For example, the badge of a white male philosopher who does philosophy of mathematics might be the size of half-dollar while conversing with similar philosophers. But if he walks into a room with an African-American woman who does disability studies, it might approach the size of a dinner plate. The badges of an untenured gay cis male philosopher working on standpoint theory and that of a senior transgender woman doing analytic philosophy of mind will approach equilibrium, in accordance with the Second Law of Privilege Dynamics (hereafter, “PD”).*

We are currently requesting that American Privilege Association require all members to wear them at public functions. Unfortunately the badges are still in the experimental stage. Our engineers are not sure what would happen, say, if Kwame Anthony Appiah and Sally Haslanger were on a discussion panel with a white male professor who has a degree from a “B” school and who is adjuncting at a community college in rural Arkansas. Some think the badge will become a singularity, while others suggest (more worryingly) that the result will be akin to the “crossing of the streams.” In any event, they hold more promise than the t-shirts (now available free with a paid subscription to Hypatia).

We encourage further stories about what it’s like to be faced with the indignity of RESPECT, and we look forward to reporting on other advancements in PD.

*For those unfamiliar with the literature, the First Law of Privilege Dynamics suggests that when a privileged philosopher is being ridiculed, berated, or otherwise disparaged for any reason by a member of a less powerful group, he needs to just sit there and STFU!

An earlier draft of this article appeared on the NewSaps blog.