EthicalStL.org

Identifying with and being a part of a community is a quintessential human endeavor. However, exclusion is a common challenge to community-building. This talk focuses on teasing out ways to create communities that genuinely strive to include everyone.

Sincere Kirabo is a DC-area-based cultural critic and social change instigator; his work focuses on cultivating Black humanist culture, building healthy Black masculinity, and struggling to create a world that honors the “radical” idea of free Black people. Sincere has a background in social science, and his social critiques have been featured in media outlets including The Humanist, Black Youth Project, and Everyday Feminism. Sincere served as social justice coordinator with the American Humanist Association, connecting humanist philosophy with inclusive practices and outreach. He is active in LGBTQ issues and secular social justice.

Identifying with and being a part of a community is a quintessential human endeavor. However, exclusion is a common challenge to community-building. This talk focuses on teasing out ways to create communities that genuinely strive to include everyone.brbr Sincere Kirabo is a DC-area-based cultural critic and social change instigator; his work focuses on cultivating Black humanist culture, building healthy Black masculinity, and struggling to create a world that honors the “radical” idea of free Black people. Sincere has a background in social science, and his social critiques have been featured in media outlets including The Humanist, Black Youth Project, and Everyday Feminism. Sincere served as social justice coordinator with the American Humanist Association, connecting humanist philosophy with inclusive practices and outreach. He is active in LGBTQ issues and secular social justice.

Philosophers, politicians, and talking heads everywhere are decrying an apparent breakdown of civility in our public discourse. Rising partisanship, extremism, and an increasingly contentious social media environment are combining to fracture our political community and make our public discussions cruel and fruitless. But what does it mean to be “civil”, really, and is it as high a value as many believe? In this Platform we’ll explore what “civility” means, and how it can cultivate—or stifle—community.

Philosophers, politicians, and talking heads everywhere are decrying an apparent breakdown of civility in our public discourse. Rising partisanship, extremism, and an increasingly contentious social media environment are combining to fracture our political community and make our public discussions cruel and fruitless. But what does it mean to be “civil”, really, and is it as high a value as many believe? In this Platform we’ll explore what “civility” means, and how it can cultivate—or stifle—community.

An individual’s community used to be largely determined by circumstance—the extended family and town in which they grew up, the traditions of family and background. “Community” was mostly a given, and often something to escape from in search of freedom and new experiences. Today, community is often something that people are seeking, as families shrink, people move more often, traditions continue to lose power, and individuality reigns supreme. What does it mean to cultivate voluntary community? What do we owe family or tradition? What do we owe relative strangers? What do we owe ourselves? What does choosing community require of us, and what does it give us in return?

An individual’s community used to be largely determined by circumstance—the extended family and town in which they grew up, the traditions of family and background. “Community” was mostly a given, and often something to escape from in search of freedom and new experiences. Today, community is often something that people are seeking, as families shrink, people move more often, traditions continue to lose power, and individuality reigns supreme. What does it mean to cultivate voluntary community? What do we owe family or tradition? What do we owe relative strangers? What do we owe ourselves? What does choosing community require of us, and what does it give us in return?

Culture and politics today are riven with debates about social justice. Black Lives Matter and the #MeToo movement are social justice campaigns which have become international phenomena. At the heart of these movements are so-called “social justice warriors”: people who take to the streets (and their keyboards and phones) to promote their vision of social justice. But what does it mean to be a social justice warrior, and should we become one?

Culture and politics today are riven with debates about social justice. Black Lives Matter and the #MeToo movement are social justice campaigns which have become international phenomena. At the heart of these movements are so-called “social justice warriors”: people who take to the streets (and their keyboards and phones) to promote their vision of social justice. But what does it mean to be a social justice warrior, and should we become one?

The epidemic of gun violence is of deep concern to most Americans. Yet it often seems as if we’re stuck in a cycle of tragedy, “thoughts and prayers, and pollical stalemate. What progress has been made and how might we achieve more?

The epidemic of gun violence is of deep concern to most Americans. Yet it often seems as if we’re stuck in a cycle of tragedy, “thoughts and prayers, and pollical stalemate. What progress has been made and how might we achieve more?