The Legitimacy and Necessity of Black Philosophy

The Legitimacy and Necessity of Black Philosophy

Dr. Jones argues against the practices and oppression of the Black people as well as ontological issues. Through the Black suffering, his central motive and message of research to the people is to fight against oppression where unjust subjugations and violence predominate Black culture (Yancy et al., 2014). He continues with efforts of the liberation struggle and believes that it is the duty of the people to wage the fight against the numerous types of oppression experienced by individuals. The scholar argues that there is an incompatibility between Black philosophy and the field of philosophy that legitimizes white racism (Jones, 1977). Jones’ theism claims promote the humanist drive to better the world, while his human-centric argument advocates for the need and duty for the people to transform disparaging deeds of historical repetition, dismantle oppressive structures, and eradicate the manifestations of social injustices.

White culture segregates people, as it does not include black cultures or perspectives, thereby committing to demonstrating white supremacy while disregarding the black experience. Jones claims that the prevalence of racism that infects the American way of life engraves a mark on the field of philosophy (Yancy et al., 2014). Reflecting on the American’s racist social movements, it seems that formulating philosophy was for the whites only. Jones comprehended that racism was not a simple issue of resisting the American Philosophy Association, where whites unwelcome the Black philosophy. However, he understood that the injustice manifested itself in cultural dispositions of anti-blackness and the practices that enforced and communicated white supremacy while maintaining black inferiority (Jones, 1977). Moreover, societal racism that develops segregation holds proximity between the claimed superior white color and the inferior black color (Jones, 1977). As such, the differences affected the treatment and interpretation of the black philosophy as racial, inferior, and tainted, as compared to the white philosophy, which was regarded as the only philosophy. Seemingly, according to Jones, philosophy reflects a structure of oppression, therefore legitimizing racial, ethnic, political, and economic injustices against black people. We offer assignment help with high professionalism.

Joyce Mitchell Cook claims that people have to save humankind and contradicts that philosophy is often context-bound, which disclaims any truths on principles because whites and blacks compete over their interests. Thereby, she does not agree or disagree with black philosophy but holds neutral ground, illustrating that different movements deserve equal regard and allowing people to maintain personal convictions on a philosophical basis alone (Yancy, 2016). Nonetheless, both Jones and Cook would have disagreed on Black philosophy, as she states in her interview about opposing the arguments of Negritude. She rather emphasizes people’s attitudes of racial inferiority and illustrates that the black nationalists who discovered white supremacy as a dominant group foster reciprocal attitudes of blacks as inferior (Yancy, 2016). Furthermore, Cook negates that Black philosophy derives its identity from the black authors who wrote it because the philosophy focuses on the interests of blacks (Yancy, 2016). In my viewpoint, Cook illustrates that a philosophy analyzes and defines contexts but is not context-bound. Therefore, she disagrees with the attitude of identifying Black philosophy or white philosophy with a group of people.

References

Jones, W. R. (1977). The Legitimacy and Necessity of Black Philosophy: Some Preliminary Considerations in Philosophy and the Black Experience. In Philosophical (The) Forum Boston, Mass (Vol. 9, No. 2-3, pp. 149-160).

Yancy, G., McClendon III, J. H., Dumain, R., Kodena, F., & Franklin, T. (2014). Philosophy and the Black Experience.

Yancy, G. (2016). African-American philosophers: 17 conversations. Routledge.

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The Legitimacy and Necessity of Black Philosophy

Please expand upon the arguments presented by William R. Jones, in “The Legitimacy and Necessity of Black Philosophy.” In addition, please reference the Interview on William R. Jones by George Yancy as a way to further understand the need for an African American philosophy.

Joyce Mitchell Cook was the first African American Women to receive a Ph.D. in Philosophy. What are her views

of a BLACK philosophy and do you think her and William R. Jones would have agreed about there being a particular Black philosophy?

Please incorporate information from the reading/interview _from class_ on Cook, as well as the audio recording of a conference proceeding with Cook and Jones and Samuel Williams from 1976.

Your response should be 500-words. Please create a “New Thread” with “Discussion Board 2” in the subject line.