the ethics of diversity: race, ethnicity, and culture in moral theory

Lawrence M. Hinman, Ph.D.Director, The Values InstituteUniversity of San Diego

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The Ethics of Diversity:Race, Ethnicity, and Culture

in Moral Theory

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Introduction

Increasing interest in diversity in the past two decades

Fundamental question: what place, if any, do race, ethnicity, and culture have in moral theory?

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Overview

The Identity Argument Minority Rights The Virtues Necessary for Living Wel

l in a Diverse Society

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The Identity Argument

The basic claim of the identity argument is that race, ethnicity, and culture are central to moral identity

The argument has two parts:– Negative: The Critique of Impartiality– Positive: The Situatedness of the Moral

Agent

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Impartiality and Particularity

The premise of modern moral theory has been that the moral agent ought to be impartial– Utilitarianism: The Impartial Calculator– Deontology: Acting according to the

duty of any rational agent• See especially Alasdair MacIntyre, “How the

Moral Agent Became a Ghost.”

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Godwin’s Choice Which to choose to

rescue in a burning building?– The Bishop of

Cambray (Fenelon)– His chambermaid

Version #2:– The Bishop of

Cambray– Your mother

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Godwin’s Choice, 2“Suppose the valet had been my brother, my father, or my benefactor. This would not alter the truth of the proposition. The life of Fenelon would still be more valuable than that of the valet; and justice, pure, unadulterated justice, would still have preferred that which was most valuable. Justice would have taught me to save the life of Fenelon [the Bishop of Cambray] at the expense of the other. What magic is there in the pronoun "my," that should justify us in overturning the decisions of impartial truth? My brother or my father may be a fool or a profligate, malicious, lying or dishonest. If they be, of what consequence is it that they are mine?”

--Godwin, Enquiry Concerning Political Justice, Chapter 2

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Two Questions

Godwin’s dilemma poses two distinct questions to us:– Behavior: What should I do?– Motivation: Why should I do it?

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Moral Motivation and Impartiality

Sometimes what is morally required in a situation is acting out of a particular moral motivation– e.g., visiting a sick friend.– Michael Stocker has argued that modern moral

theory has a kind of “schizophrenia,” a split between motivation and justification

• Video interview with Michael Stocker on this topic.

– Bernard Williams has pointed out the problem of “one motivation too many”

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Impartiality and Behavior

Considerations of rights establish the boundaries within which considerations of partiality may play a role: – In acting on the basis of particularity,

people may not violate rights.– Thus, in Godwin’s example, we should not

violate someone’s right to be saved.

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Impartiality, Particularity, and Power

Critics of impartiality often claim that claims of impartiality often mask power relationships of dominance:– Impartiality is really just the partiality of the

powerful.

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Identity and Transparency For the dominant group in a society,

their particular identity is transparent, I.e., not perceived by them as a specific identity– Supermarket example

For non-dominant groups, their identity is always experienced as particular, as specific to them as members of a group.

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The Identity Argument

Premise 1 What is morally right depends (at least in part) on one’s identity as a moral agent;

Premise 2 One’s race (or ethnicity, or culture) is central to one’s identity as a moral agent;

Conclusion Thus, what is morally right depends (at least in part) on that person’s race, ethnicity, or culture.

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Premise 1

What is morally right depends (at least in part) on one’s identity as a moral agent.

Kantians would argue that moral identity is purely rational, and that it does not involve any elements of particularity.

Supporters of this premise point to special obligations characteristic of particular cultures and ethnicities, e.g., placing a high value on family commitments.

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Premise 2

One’s race (or ethnicity, or culture) is central to one’s identity as a moral agent.

In order to evaluate this premise, we first must ask: What exactly do we mean by race, ethnicity, and culture?

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Race, Ethnicity, and Culture

Race– Initially appears to be biological– Eventually is seen as socially constructed

Ethnicity– An individual’s identification with a particular

cultural group to which they are usually biologically related

Culture– Set of beliefs, values and practices that define

a group’s identity

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Internalist and Externalist Accounts of Ethnic Identity

Externalist accounts:– Ethnic identity is formed by certain external

events, e.g., slavery, persecution, discrimination;– This even fits within utilitarianism

Internalist accounts:– Ethnic identity is formed by certain shared

experiences, often of oppression, which bind a people together

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Responses to the Identity Argument

Separatist—seeks to preserve identity by maintaining a separate existence.

Supremacist—seeks power and superiority over all other groups.

Assimilationist and Integrationist--seeks a common identity, the “melting pot.”

Pluralist—preserves particularity in a shared framework, the “crazy quilt.”

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Separatism

May be:– Partial– Complete

Examples – Amish and

Mennonites– Orthodox Jews– Acoma Pueblo

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Supremacist

Seeks power and superiority over all other groups.

See Jim Crow laws in the United States, which tried to retain white supremacy.

http://www.ferris.edu/news/jimcrow/index.htm.

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Assimilationism

Predominant American metaphor: the melting pot.

Classic philosophical source: Richard Wasserstrom, “On Racism and Sexism.” Wasserstrom argues that race and gender should be no more significant than eye color.

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Pluralism

Rejects ideal of impartiality Seeks to preserve and strengthen

group identity. Sources:

– Iris Marion Young, Justice and the Politics of Difference.

– Michael Walzer, Spheres of Justice.

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Pluralism and Multiculturalism Principle of Understanding

– We seek to understand other cultures before we pass judgment on them.

Principle of Tolerance– We recognize that there are important areas in which

intelligent people of good will will in fact differ. Principle of Standing Up to Evil

– We recognize that at some points we must stand up against evil, even when it is outside of our own borders.

Principle of Fallibility– We recognize that, even with the best of intentions, our

judgments may be flawed and mistake.

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Minority Rights

Kymlicka, Liberalism, Community, and Culture (1989) and Multicultural Citizenship (1995)

Thesis: liberalism entails minority rights

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Kymlicka’s Argument

Following Rawls, Kymlicka argues that the ability to develop and pursue a life plan is a very important good

One’s own culture is necessary for achieving that good

Many minority cultures need special protection if they are to continue to exist

Thus minority cultures must be given special protection so that all members of society have an equal opportunity to pursue a life plan.

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Groups

Indigenous Peoples Formerly Enslaved Peoples Immigrant Minorities

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The Rights of Indigenous Peoples Compensatory

Justice– Backward-looking– Redress past harms

Rights of Indigenous Peoples– Language– Religion– Land– Self-determination

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The Rights of Formerly Enslaved Peoples

Do we owe a special debt to those who have been forcibly brought to our shores and enslaved?

To their descendants? How is such a debt

measured? Repaid?

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Hate Crimes

One way of providing special protection to groups that have been the object of persecution is to provide special legal sanctions against persecutory acts--in other words, against hate crimes.

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The Rights of Immigrant Minorities

What special rights, if any, do immigrant minorities have if they have freely come to the United States in search of a better life?– Language– Support

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The Virtues Necessary for Living Well in a Diverse Society

Lawrence Blum indicates there are three virtues necessary for living wel in a diverse society– Opposition to racism– Multiculturalism– Sense of community, connection, or

common humanity