Anonymous #1 6w

Oh I agree. What I’m saying is completely compatible with holding people accountable for their actions and lack thereof. I’m only pointing this out because I feel that, in rightfully condemning objectionable actions, some people seem to also shame people for even possessing certain emotions, attitudes, beliefs and intuitions. I would agree that there are morally defective beliefs and attitudes, however, it’s not clear that the possession of the attitudes and beliefs is fair game for shaming.

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Anonymous OP 6w

I think it does depend on what the attitude or belief is. Some moral beliefs are pretty malleable and people should actively strive to improve their morality, and some factual beliefs can be changed with a little bit of open minded research. things like racism sexism or homophobia may be “intuitive” or subconscious but people should still work to dismantle them. I don’t think shame is usually a useful way to make people change though.

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Anonymous #2 6w

I would agree that the vast majority of shaming is unjustified. But I’d just add that, besides changing an individual’s behavior, shaming a perpetrator can also function to build solidarity with those harmed by them, to deter others from participating in that action and to reaffirm the validity of whatever principles they’ve violated. So, in deciding whether shaming someone is a proportionate response, those other benefits should be considered.

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