Chapter 6: Sexism, Racism, and Reparation Marilyn Frye, “Sexism” – Two components of “sex identification” “Sex marking”: the ways in which we respond to members of a sex – Example: Couple goes to a restaurant, waiter addresses the man but not the woman “Sex announcement”: the ways in which we announce our sex to others Example: Style of dress – Frye argues that the forces underlying these behaviors also oppress women.

Chapter 6: Sexism, Racism, and Reparation Marilyn Frye, “Sexism” – Oppression requires a dominant group and a subordinate group. “The details of sex-announcing behaviors...contribute to the reduction of women and the elevation of men.” – Example: Men's clothing is comfortable and allows for freedom of movement. Women's clothing is restrictive and does not protect as well against hazards in the environment. “The sex-correlated variations of our behavior tend systematically to the benefit of males and the detriment of females.” – Example: Maleness commands respect, femaleness calls for self-deprecation. – Frye argues that this oppressive sex-based system is designed to appear natural and irreversible.

Chapter 6: Sexism, Racism, and Reparation J.L.A. Garcia, “Racism as a Model for Understanding Sexism” – Garcia begins by discussing and objecting to accounts of racism/sexism by Wasserstrom and Frye. – He then proposes his own account of racism: Racism as race-based ill will (or race-based deficiency of good will) “The fact remains that racism lies primarily in the heart, that is, in hopes, fears, joys, desires, and intentions.”

Chapter 6: Sexism, Racism, and Reparation J.L.A. Garcia, “Racism as a Model for Understanding Sexism” – Garcia then explains how his account of racism also seems to work as an account of sexism. – The immorality of sexism, understood on his account, consists in “vicious failures in the moral virtues of benevolence.” – Thus, sex-based ill will include “a failure to regard and to treat members of one sex, S1, as having the full rights and status that it is one of the marks of the virtuous to accord all people.”

Chapter 6: Sexism, Racism, and Reparation Michael Philips, “Racist Acts and Racist Humor” – The agent-centered theory of racism: Racist acts are acts performed by racist people on the basis of racist beliefs, intentions, etc. – The act-centered theory of racism: Racist acts are either performed on the basis of racist beliefs, etc., or they tend to mistreat their target. Thus, a person who isn't racist could still perform a racist act.

Chapter 6: Sexism, Racism, and Reparation Michael Philips, “Racist Acts and Racist Humor” – Philips then applies the act-centered theory of racism to racist humor “Bits of humor may be racist in three ways: (1) They may insult (or be intended to insult), humiliate, or ridicule members of victimized groups in relation to their ethnic identity; (2) They may create (or be intended to create) a community of feelings against such a group; and (3) They may promote (or be intended to promote) beliefs that are used to “justify” the mistreatment of such a group.”

Chapter 6: Sexism, Racism, and Reparation J. Angelo Corlett, “Reparations to Native Americans?” Reparations  Reparative compensation: providing wronged parties or their descendants money, property, and other tangible goods that might be (roughly) proportional to the harms experienced by them  Reparative punishment: punishment directed at those who intentionally refuse to provide reparative compensation Corlett argues that the historic rights violations of the U.S. government against Native Americans ought to be rectified by way of reparations, as much as humanly possible.

Chapter 6: Sexism, Racism, and Reparation J. Angelo Corlett, “Reparations to Native Americans?” Corlett considers (and objects to) arguments which deny that the U.S. government and its citizens have an obligation to provide reparations to Native Americans:  The objection from historical complexity  The objection to collective responsibility  The affirmative action objection  The objection from the indeterminacy of Native American identity  The historical reparations objection  The objection from social utility He closes by considering some possible reparations policies.

Chapter 6: Sexism, Racism, and Reparation Louis P. Pojman, “Why Affirmative Action is Immoral” – The Level Playing Field Argument: Whites get an unfair “head start” on life. So, affirmative action policies are justified. Objections: Doubly harms affirmative action admittees guilty of “Peter Principle,” harms poor-but-talented Whites, etc. – The Compensation Argument for preferential affirmative action: “historically Blacks have been wronged and severely harmed by Whites. Therefore white society should compensate Blacks for the injury caused them.” Objection: Involves a distorted notion of compensation – The Argument for Compensation From Those Who Innocently Benefited From Past Injustice: “Young White males as innocent bystanders of unjust discrimination against blacks and women have no grounds for complaint when society seeks to level the tilted field.” Thus, affirmative action policies are justified. Objection: “Sometimes a wrong cannot be compensated, and we just have to make the best of an imperfect world.”

Chapter 6: Sexism, Racism, and Reparation Louis P. Pojman, “Why Affirmative Action is Immoral” – Main conclusion: “What is wrong about discrimination against Blacks is that it fails to treat Black people as individuals, judging them instead by their skin color not their merit...What is equally wrong about Affirmative Action is that it fails to treat White males with dignity as individuals, judging them by both their race and gender, instead of their merit.”

Chapter 6: Sexism, Racism, and Reparation Thomas E. Hill Jr., “The Message of Affirmative Action” – Consequentialist (“forward-looking”) arguments for affirmative action Message implies that the individual who benefits is merely being used to bring about a desired consequence. – Reparations-based (“backward-looking”) arguments for affirmative action Message implies that the individual who benefits is self-centered, merely “grasping for limited 'goodies.' ”

Chapter 6: Sexism, Racism, and Reparation Thomas E. Hill Jr., “The Message of Affirmative Action” – “A moral outlook that focuses on cross-temporal narrative values” This is Hill's preferred alternative to the previous two approaches. The example of John and Mary: question is “what response best affirms and contributes to the sort of ongoing relationship he has and wants to continue with Mary” Approach to affirmative action would appeal to values such as “having a history of racial and gender relations governed, as far as possible, by the ideal of mutual respect, trust, and fair opportunity for all”