He’s guest-blogging over at NewAPPS. Go check it out.
UPDATE: The first comment on this post asks an important question of the sort we value a lot here: Black philosophers, WHY STAY?
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Comments are closed on the post, though. Since they’re open here, I’ll ask a question, intended not just for Prof. McPherson, but for any other black philosopher reading this blog who has “stuck with it”:
(1) Can you describe a juncture or two at which you seriously contemplated leaving the profession, and what kept you in it?
(2) If you had to advise your younger self, would you advise him/her to continue in philosophy, or to pursue another field?
(3) What sorts of advice do you think it is important to give young black philosophers (at both the undergraduate and graduate level)?
yes, since comments are closed over at newapps let me just take the opportunity in this venue to thank prof. mcpherson for his post.
@1
1) I considered leaving soon after getting tenure. I had accomplished a critical career aim–and it wasn’t enough, all things considered. My department was always supportive, but my situation re the university later changed for the better.
2) I would not advise my younger self, circa 2010, to pursue philosophy as a solo option. I probably would pursue dual degrees in law and philosophy–not that I’m especially interested in law. Were I interested in dealing with empirical study, I would consider sociology or psychology.
3) I don’t have much positive, general advice–other than to try to strike a balance between pursuing questions you’re truly interested in and maintaining a discernible connection to mainstream issues or approaches.
@2
Thanks, sk, and to everyone else who took time to read and think about the post.
(1) There were two real points that I contemplated not pursuing the dream of becoming a professional philosopher. During undergrad, my application to become a philosophy major was rejected because, during my interview with the undergraduate major adviser, I said that my main interest in philosophy lied in philosophical issues concerning race. How do I know this was the reason? Because he told me so. I ended up having to petition to enter the major. Right then I knew I was in for an uphill battle if I wanted to become a professional philosopher. But what kept me optimistic was having 3 excellent mentors in the department. The other time I seriously contemplated giving up the dream was between undergrad and grad school. After undergrad, I was offered a high-paying job on Wall Street in mathematical finance. I was a double major in undergrad, both philosophy and chemistry, so I was enticed with the prospects of putting the math from my chemistry major to use, as well as the prospects of getting paid lots of money right away instead of delaying gratification. (Side note: I still don’t earn as much as they were going to pay me at that job!) I rejected the job offer though. The reason? I knew money and playing with numbers couldn’t bring me happiness, but philosophy could, so I had to give it a try.
(2) I would advise him to continue in philosophy. At various points, I could have pursued the professions of medicine, academic biochemist, government or industry chemist, mathematical finance, and academic or industry biologist. I had a real possibility of entering each of these fields, but I doubt I’d be as satisfied as I am now as a philosopher, although I’d be richer!
(3) Pursue the profession that (a) you love the most, (b) you’re the best at, and (c) benefits society the most. No doubt the jobs that satisfy (a)-(c) for any particular person will be an equivalence class with more than one element. In that case, give (a) extra weight. Life’s too short. If philosophy professor is that job, and I hope it is, stick with it, the personal satisfaction, the lifestyle, and the job security will more than likely make up for the sacrifices you’ll have to make to get here.
I would love to know if any one has advice about what students can do to improve the situation.
Especially as he is my valued colleague, I’m really glad Quayshawn has stayed in the profession. Our department is a model of diversity, and we present incredible breadth to our students in our teaching and in our research and conferences as to what philosophical issues are like.
I might also note that Quayshawn is the founder of the Society for Young Black Philosophers, which I think is another constructive step to get greater representation in the profession.
I should have said Quayshawn is co-founder of the Society of Young Black Philosophers.
And I meant to say that in his post Quayshawn implicitly notes the importance of showing students who can be a philosopher and what can be done in philosophy.
Kathryn, you raise a good question. Students can join SYBP, take advantage of its services, and fulfill its goals, which is to increase the percentage of blacks in TT jobs in philosophy and with tenure in philosophy. So, the most important thing black students can do is succeed. No change can be made from the outside, and we need to reach increasingly higher numbers in order to bring about increasingly significant changes from the inside. I also like Lionel’s advice of striking a balance between pursuing the topics you’re interested in and gaining expertise in mainstream issues. The latter is likely to undermine laden negative stereotypes about our intellectual capabilities, which I am willing to bet is a large part of the problem here. So, for example, if you’re interested in philosophy of race, don’t stop there. Also develop an interest and expertise in an affiliated mainstream field, such as political philosophy, metaphysics, or philosophy of science. Also, engage in “big questions” in those fields, and show how the questions you’re interested in tie into big questions in affiliated mainstream fields.
“Also develop an interest and expertise in an affiliated mainstream field, such as political philosophy…”
And I’d suggest to those entirely within affiliated mainstream fields: take an interest in, or at least acquaint yourself with, philosophy of race. (I sheepishly confess that this is an area I’ve not myself engaged with since I was an undergraduate, and I need to make amends.)
It’s worth remembering that before Rawls published A Theory of Justice and Philosophy and Public Affairs was founded in the early seventies, all of political philosophy (what little there was) was outside of the mainstream of philosophy. It must have been in large part because broad cross-sections of philosophers – and not just those in the least well off socio-economic group, and not just those whose liberties were trampled on – took an interest in distributive justice and liberalism, that political philosophy became part of the mainstream rather than something on the margins.
(I grant that things of value may be lost – e.g., a radical, critical edge – as well as gained when something becomes mainstream rather than remaining marginal.)
Fellow co-founder of SYBP here (shout out to Luvell Anderson, who is the founder in the truest sense). I can honestly say I never contemplated dropping the pursuit of philosophy once I realized it was what I was interested in… even at a certain point in grad school where a major hurdle was placed in my way.
I realize that I do not represent the norm in this certainty, which I have had since some time during my third year of undergrad. It came, by the way, only after my exposure to this book: http://www.amazon.com/African-American-Philosophers-Conversations-George-Yancy/dp/0415921007/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1324030662&sr=8-1 While philosophy had already seemed fun and interesting before, it was this book that made me think that philosophy could be my avenue to contributing to the advancement of people of African descent. I very much enjoy standing on the shoulders of those black philosophers who began the work of clearing a space for us in this oh-so-white profession.
While my answer to question 2 is obvious, what I’d say about advising black students at the undergrad level is, first of all, to simply foster their excitement and expose them to more of what’s out there, in hopes that they will see how they might contribute to a field or set of fields and have fun working out their ideas. Some realism about what’s tough about choosing this career path and about philosophy’s demographics and hierarchy of preoccupations is warranted, sure, but I don’t see the point in over-emphasizing the negative and scaring them. Once they’re in grad school, of course, what should be fostered is not merely their excitement and sense of having fun but their preparedness for what’s ahead, their ability to navigate philosophy the profession rather than just philosophy the interesting set of texts and conversations. Mentorship is key, and SYBP hopes to facilitate such mentorship in concrete ways.
Overall, for both undergrads and grads, I would say that we should not be afraid to pay special attention (within the bounds of fairness, although fairness construed in a social justice-oriented way) to black students and other under-represented folks – we should be working to help their passion for philosophy ignite and stay aflame, and working to help them be the best they can be and as ready as they can be for the road to tenure. I know I’m thankful for those that have helped and supported me along the way so far, and I’m excited about what my brother Quayshawn and all the other young black folks I know coming out of grad school recently will be able to accomplish in years to come.
Thanks for mentioning the Yancy book, Chike- I hadn’t thought of it in a while but really liked it when I read it (and not just because it has conversations w/ two of my mentors in it!) It’s an enlightening and inspiring book. Yancy has done very good work in general on these topics and in bringing the work of black philosophers, past and present, forward and deserves more attention than he’s received, I think.
Of course, there is never a point, in any context, of “over-emphasizing the negative.”
There is a point of calling attention to the downside of broader practices and ramifications that generally are hidden or underappreciated.
Talented black students will have options. When such students are determined to go on in philosophy, they should be encouraged to do so. I have never called into question the independent merits of doing philosophy as a student or a professional. But if aspects of the racialized reality of the philosophy profession might scare away some black students who otherwise would have continued on, this doesn’t plausibly support the notion that these aspects of reality should be closeted.
1. Like Chike, I can’t recall a moment where I seriously contemplated leaving philosophy. I guess I have been fortunate to land in places with supportive people (this is true of both my undergrad and graduate institutions).
2. To my younger self, I would probably still advise him to pursue philosophy, but along with Lionel’s advice, I’d also suggest seriously pursuing another option along with it. Obviously, being able to do more opens up additional opportunities, which is especially helpful given the increased competition for philosophy jobs.
3. Like Quayshawn and Chike, I encourage young Black philosophers at the undergrad and grad level to take advantage of SYBP for the reasons they have enumerated.
@ Kathryn
it strikes me that improving the situation is something that rests largely not on students, but rather, on those “on the inside” as it were. Mike Otsuka’s point about those in the “mainstream” familiarizing themselves with issues in the philosophy of race (and I might add Africana, Latino/a philosophy, and Black Feminist philosophy) is an important one. How can we change the imagination of those entirely consumed with so-called mainstream issues so that those of us with different entry points into philosophy aren’t marginalized or shunned altogether?
Hi, Luvell, I was glad to meet you last week in England. It’s interesting that Lionel mentions psychology. There is, as you know, some interesting work going on in psychology that deals with race concerns, and a lot of philosophers are also involved there; it seems to me we might finds ways to open philosophy up by looking at interdisciplinary topics like that of the nature/status of bias. I’m trying to think of other topics that might place race issues in more mainstream philosophy, but the only ones I can think of might seem oddly old and stale. E.g., species, intelligence, scientific use of human beings and similar topics really regrettable research has brought to our attention.
I hear you, Lionel. Both of us agree, I’m sure, that (a) one should not lie to students to make the path of philosophy sound easier, rosier, friendlier, etc., than it is and (b) one should not try to stand in the way of students who have decided that they are committed to philosophy. So both of us would advocate a balanced approach… but I fully admit to advocating a balance that, when it tips, tips toward encouraging black students to go into philosophy. I want to see and hear *more* *from* *more of us*, I enjoy the ways we change this discipline, and I optimistically believe that organized efforts like SYBP and the Collegium of Black Women Philosophers are starting to construct networks of support and vehicles for collective action that will make being black in philosophy a much less alienating and disappointing experience for future students (it is surprising that I am the first to mention CBWP given the context of this discussion – I apologize for not mentioning it in my first message).
Hi Anne, it was very lovely meeting you as well. Yes, you are right. There is interesting work already happening with bias. Sally Haslanger and others are also doing interesting work on generics. There is also the emerging literature on racial slurs by philosophers of language. I’m certain other topics closer to the “mainstream” also lend themselves to forays into race concerns (moral repair comes to mind as one possibility). It’s just a matter of getting others to recognize them as philosophically legitimate concerns as well.
Luvell, thanks for the interesting list. I suppose I could quickly google “moral repair,” but I’m interested in how you think it relates. There seems to be so much repairing that is morally important that I’m not sure whether the term frefers to some one aspect or not.
I’ve only just begun reading on the subject myself, but my initial impression is that thinking about how to repair relationships after serious racial wrongdoing and whether it’s even possible in some circumstances may prove fruitful for thinking about racial justice. But as I said, my thoughts here aren’t really clear yet :).
Interesting. There are complex issues about, e.g., various national attempts to apologize.