PHI2045S - Philosophy Of Race

Course Outline:

Many of the topics of public debate in contemporary South Africa raise intriguing philosophical questions: Morally speaking, does most of the Western Cape actually belong to the Khoisan? Does being indigenous (if that concept makes sense) give one certain moral rights? Has the achievement of legal equality liberated black people, or would true liberation require the rediscovery of a distinctive identity? What special responsibilities (if any) do formerly advantaged groups have today? This course brings the tools of philosophical argument and analysis to bear on such problems, making use of, e.g., contemporary theories of moral ownership rights and the phenomenon of “epistemic injustice”.