These are treacherous waters in which to wade but I feel compelled to say there is an investment in heroes that lead to a kind of reversal of what William James called a certain blindness in human beings. In this case, as with so many heroes--Jefferson, Dickens, Heidegger, Pound, Gandhi, Lennon--we are blind to their moral failings because of what they achieved.
I appreciate that you did not use the term "me too" because I think it borders on trivializing what seems to me an unfolding of a genuine social movement to insist that sexual exploitation of less powerful by the more powerful is monstrous. The surprising thing to me is not the institutional blindness, but the fact that the NYT ran the story and that it was accepted as grounds for action--no blue ribbon committees or task forces to make recommendations. Similarly, I remain surprised by the fall out in academia of the Epstein revelations.
Institutions function to protect the powerful, and that includes their presidents and their icons. When I think back to what Annette Gordon-Reed faced and what so many accusers have faced, the speed of this response seems a genuine achievement. To your point, the question is whether universities can turn this into a habit such that credible reports of sexual exploitation turn into action. I am more hopeful than I have ever been that this is happening.
This is yet another example of ensuring institutional greatness even 8n the face of agregious crimes. Think Bela Karolyi, Larry Nassar, the IOC, USGA, FBI.... all those young gymnasts abused for years, so as not to damage these important institutions and the great men who have lefted them up to greatness and glory. Just one of many ezamples. This culture reveres greatness and the great men who made the greatness and bugger all the casualties along the way.
The whole ethnic studies curriculum in California was the blue-state equivalent of what we are now seeing in red-states: a highly ideological project designed to create and reinforce interest groups. Obviously issues around race and ethnicity must be taught, but organizing the project around a small number of preferred groups was intellectually indefensible from day one. They reap what they sow. Maybe the horrors perpetuated by the designated heroes will cause us to revisit the project in a more intelligent way.
These are treacherous waters in which to wade but I feel compelled to say there is an investment in heroes that lead to a kind of reversal of what William James called a certain blindness in human beings. In this case, as with so many heroes--Jefferson, Dickens, Heidegger, Pound, Gandhi, Lennon--we are blind to their moral failings because of what they achieved.
I appreciate that you did not use the term "me too" because I think it borders on trivializing what seems to me an unfolding of a genuine social movement to insist that sexual exploitation of less powerful by the more powerful is monstrous. The surprising thing to me is not the institutional blindness, but the fact that the NYT ran the story and that it was accepted as grounds for action--no blue ribbon committees or task forces to make recommendations. Similarly, I remain surprised by the fall out in academia of the Epstein revelations.
Institutions function to protect the powerful, and that includes their presidents and their icons. When I think back to what Annette Gordon-Reed faced and what so many accusers have faced, the speed of this response seems a genuine achievement. To your point, the question is whether universities can turn this into a habit such that credible reports of sexual exploitation turn into action. I am more hopeful than I have ever been that this is happening.
I very much appreciate your comment and the whole thing deserves more than a brief substack but I wanted to at least start the conversation
“All the teaching is tops of waves.” - Great analogy; I think surfers might call it surfing ankle-high instead “heavy waves”.
This is yet another example of ensuring institutional greatness even 8n the face of agregious crimes. Think Bela Karolyi, Larry Nassar, the IOC, USGA, FBI.... all those young gymnasts abused for years, so as not to damage these important institutions and the great men who have lefted them up to greatness and glory. Just one of many ezamples. This culture reveres greatness and the great men who made the greatness and bugger all the casualties along the way.
The whole ethnic studies curriculum in California was the blue-state equivalent of what we are now seeing in red-states: a highly ideological project designed to create and reinforce interest groups. Obviously issues around race and ethnicity must be taught, but organizing the project around a small number of preferred groups was intellectually indefensible from day one. They reap what they sow. Maybe the horrors perpetuated by the designated heroes will cause us to revisit the project in a more intelligent way.
I’m so glad you are also thinking of this in terms of similar projects. Scholarship has to emerge from scholars.