c10 cia #4

Aristotle on Equality (pt. 1)

• Everything in nature has a purpose built into it

→ Understanding that purpose helps us understand what is just

→ Ex: Who should get the best ukuleles? (A: The best players)

• Fairness doesn’t mean equality; it means excellence relative to purpose

  → Ex: If it’s to develop leaders, maybe you admit those with leadership potential

Aristotle on Equality (pt. 2)

• Justice is teleological (purpose-driven) and virtue-based, not just procedure-based.

Griswold v. Connecticut (1965)

• Issue: The state banned contraceptives, even for married couples

• Outcome: Ruled unconstitutional under equal protection–gender neutral justice.

• Established a ‘right to privacy’ based on ‘penumbras' (implied rights) of several constitutional amendments

Amendments that imply a right to privacy

1. 1st Amendment (freedom of association)

2. 3rd Amendment (protection from quartering troops)

3. 4th Amendment (protection from unreasonable searches)

4. 5th Amendment (protection against self-incrimination)

5. 9th Amendment (other rights retained by the people)

What did Aristotle say about justice?

• Justice means giving people what they deserve, based on their merit or contribution to society

On Justice and Rawls, Kant, and Robert Novick

• Cannot tie Justice to morally arbitrary concept or virtues

→ Because it robs people of the freedom to choose their own values

Voluntary obligations

• Things we choose

→ Ex: contracts, promises

Natural Duties

• Moral duties we owe to all humans

→ Ex: Not to kill

Obligations of Solidarity (Communitarianism)

• Duties we owe because of shared identity or history, even if we didn’t choose them

→ Ex: Responsibilities to fellow citizens or communities; relationship between parents and children

Takeaways on Justice

• Justice is bound up with community and moral identity, but that doesn’t mean we can’t critically reason about it and seek moral improvement

The Role of Citizenship

• Promote the Common Good and Search for the Principles of Justice

• Deliberation, debating (publicly, respectfully, and honestly), and shared responsibility

• Citizenship isn’t just about rights–it’s also about obligations (Volunteering/Jury duty)

True Justice Achieved by Interconnecting Philosophies

• Basic civil rights for everyone - John Stuart Mill, Utilitarianism

• Fair and equal opportunity to exercise those free rights - Rawls

• Mutual benefits in exchanges - Rawls + Libertarianism

• Be attentive to the least well-off members of society - Rawls

• Recognition that every individual has inherent value and should never be used for personal gain - Kant

• Focus on developing good character (virtues) - Aristotle

“The True Cost” - What is getting represented as our responsibility in the film?

1. Natural Duties (Liberal Individualism):

→ We have a moral duty to respect others & shouldn't support systems that put their lives at risk.

2. Obligations of Solidarity (Communitarianism):

→ Even if Western consumers didn’t choose to be connected to workers abroad, we are linked through global systems, so we have a duty to acknowledge how our choices impact others b/c we benefit from them.

3. Citizenship & Civic Responsibility:

→ Urges viewers to move from passive consumption to active citizenship

4. Aristotle & Telos:

→ The film argues fashion’s purpose should be human flourishing, not profit, and critiques a system that prioritizes consumption over virtue.

5. Kant & Moral Autonomy:

→ Fast fashion violates Kantian ethics by treating workers as tools.

“The True Cost” - Interconnected Groups

1. Garment workers who are grouped based on exploitation and labor conditions.

2. Consumers, primarily in Western countries, are often unaware of their impact.

3. Corporations and fashion brands, driven by profit, prioritize cost-efficiency over humanity.

4. Activists and ethical designers who work across these groups to create more equitable solutions.

And We Are Not Saved: The Elusive Quest for Racial Justice - Derrick Bell

• Geneva Crenshaw is a time-traveling civil rights lawyer who travels to the Constitutional Convention

→ North and South both benefited from slave labor

→ Revolution funded by slave labor

• In their view, property–including slaves–had to be protected at all costs in order to form the Union

• Slavery was at the foundation of the American economy

Professor Derrick Bell on Race, Law, and Justice

• Constitutional Contradiction: Racial inequality is part of our culture and history; it’s the contradiction embedded in the ideology that formed our republic

Critical Race Theory (CRT)

• An academic framework that explores how racism is deeply embedded in laws, institutions, and social systems–not just in individuals

• Racial inequality is not accidental but is maintained through policies that appear ‘neutral’

• Highlights the importance of lived experiences and voices of POC in understanding and challenging systemic injustice

And We Are Not Saved: The Elusive Quest for Racial Justice - Derrick Bell Takeaways

• Law is Power; Law has the ability to distribute the burdens and benefits, provide, and protect

• Racism persists under the guise of neutrality (neutral laws)

Aristotelian Virtue Theory

• Emphasizes moral development, character traits through habituation, and living a life of excellence

McIntyre’s Theory (pt. 1)

• Emphasizes that moral reasoning is embedded within traditions and practices & therefore shaped by the historical and cultural context of them

• Moral reasoning is a traditional composed activity, meaning that it cannot exist outside of a particular tradition.

McIntyre’s Theory (pt. 2)

• Morality is not a set of abstract rules or individual preferences, but a living tradition that informs and guides

How does someone know what is meaningful or good with MacIntyre’s view?”

• Understanding themselves as part of a tradition

• Learning the virtues necessary to flourish in it

• Rejecting moral fragmentation in favor of a shared, reasoned vision of the good