Political Deference and Partisanship Workshop

 

  Deference in politics is often necessary. Political issues are highly complex, and it would be too demanding to expect citizens to responsibly investigate every issue themselves. At the same time, it is important that citizens be well-informed for democracy to flourish. Deferring to trusted experts and co-partisans appears to offer a way for citizens to discharge their epistemic and political obligations. Yet, some worry that deference threatens to undermine autonomy and democratic legitimacy while leaving citizens liable to manipulation by elites. The ability to defer well may also require a great deal of knowledge, and hence would presuppose a solution to the very problem it aims to solve. How can everyday citizens navigate these tensions when forming political opinions? More generally, how should citizens form their political beliefs? This conference will investigate issues related to political deference, partisanship, and the epistemic obligations of citizens in a democracy.            

The event will take place in person as well as on zoom.

  In person space is limited, so we are asking those who want to attend in person to register here.   Edmond J. Safra Center for Ethics Harvard University
124 Mount Auburn Street
Suite 520N
Cambridge, MA 02138

 

ZOOM REGISTRATION Click here

Schedule

 

March 24

1:30 - 2:30pm:
TBD
Eric Beerbohm (Harvard)
2:35 - 3:35pm:
The Ethics of Importance: Specialization, Citizen Competence, & Complexity
Kevin Elliott (Murray State)
4:00 - 5:00pm:
What’s Wrong With Political Deference?
Elise Woodard (MIT)
5:05-6:05pm:
Representation, Deference, and Subordination
Alex Guerrero (Rutgers)  

March 25

9:30-10:30am:
Should Scientists Be Partisans?
Zeynep Pamuk (LSE)
10:35-11:35am: On Trusting Your Own Political Judgment
Fabienne Peter (Warwick)
12:00-1:00pm:
From Conspiracy to Ungoverning
Russell Muirhead (Dartmouth), co-authored with Nancy Rosenblum (Harvard)  

 

 

This workshop is organized by Elise Woodard (MIT) and Michael Hannon (Nottingham/Harvard).

 

Workshop Sponsors