A reader writes:
I’m going to start teaching a feminist philosophy class next
week and I was sort of thinking that on the first day it would be
worthwhile to *some how* broach the question, which I expect to be on
many of the students minds once they see me, of why a white dude is
teaching a class on feminism. Maybe something as simple as a joke,
but more likely opening it up for a brief discussion, with the aim of
coaxing the conversation roughly towards ideas such as that feminism
is good for everyone, patriarchy and bias can hurt anyone, nobody is
exempted from power relations, and we wouldn’t ordinarily think twice
about someone being concerned about injustices or problems that they
didn’t directly suffer from (poverty, climate change, disease). As I
write this, it seems like no big deal, but I guess I was wondering if
you had any pointers or good examples that work for these purposes?
There’s a tiny part of me that wants to say nothing about it at all
and just act like it’s just obvious and run-of-the-mill for me to be
doing this.
Wise thoughts?
Feminist Philosophers 