‘Dignitarian Harm’: The Newest Thought Police Rationalization
(Photo by Rama) (CC BY) (Resized/Cropped)
Occasionally I warn people who share my point of view (or at least some of my values, like the importance of freedom of speech) of something that, from my perch in academic life, I see coming over the horizon. I’m going to do that again now.
As the left (with notable honorable exceptions) veers further in the direction of authoritarianism (what Jonah Goldberg calls “liberal fascism”), you will begin to hear a word (and a phrase) that will be the touchstone of justifications for cracking down on speech that violates norms of political correctness by criticizing conduct or behavior that has been condemned as immoral or degrading by classical, religious, and natural law ethics.
The word is “dignitarian.”
The phrase is “dignitarian harm.”
It will be in the name of “dignitarian harm” (harm to people’s dignity) that more and more people will be fired from or excluded from employment, or denied business, or educational opportunities, or otherwise disadvantaged. Similarly, religiously affiliated academic institutions, health care providers, and social services agencies will be targeted for allegedly causing “dignitarian harm.”
We have here a matter on which libertarians and conservatives (and even old fashioned liberals) can and must unite. The concept of “dignitarian harm” as a justification for restricting civil liberties is profoundly dangerous. It is a rationalization for speech and thought policing. But it’s already appearing in law review articles and even legal briefs. It must not be permitted to gain a foothold in our jurisprudence.
Robert George is Chairman at United States Commission on International Religious Freedom, McCormick Professor of Juriprudence at Princeton University, Visiting Professor at Harvard Law School, and author of Conscience and Its Enemies: Confronting the Dogmas of Liberal Secularism.
Trending Now on Affluent Christian Investor
Sorry. No data so far.
Follow Us
The Affluent Mix
No, Rev. Warnock, The Bible Does Not Preach Socialism!... January 21, 2021 | Roger McKinney
Does The U.S. Actually Have Poor? January 21, 2021 | Jim Huntzinger
Can Biden Rise Above His Authoritarian Party?... January 21, 2021 | Frank Vernuccio
A Fatal Problem In Modern Economic Thinking... January 21, 2021 | David Bahnsen
How Companies Pay Shareholders: Buybacks Discourage CEO Empire Building... January 21, 2021 | Jerry Bowyer
The Era Of No Consequences January 14, 2021 | Frank Vernuccio
Income And Well-Being January 14, 2021 | Jim Huntzinger
How Companies Pay Shareholders: Buybacks Don’t Subtract From Wages... January 14, 2021 | Jerry Bowyer
Taper Nervous Breakdown January 14, 2021 | Michael Pento
China, Democrats, And Donald Trump January 8, 2021 | Frank Vernuccio
Biochemical Engineer Ivor Cummins Discussing “The Rosetta Stone Of Modern ... January 7, 2021 | Jerry Bowyer
Hillbilly Elegy Economics Lesson: Culture Matters... January 7, 2021 | Roger McKinney
Take The Under On 2021 GDP January 7, 2021 | Michael Pento
How Companies Pay Shareholders: Buybacks Are Not A Giveaway... January 7, 2021 | Jerry Bowyer
The History Of Income Inequality And Popping Economic Bubbles... January 7, 2021 | Jim Huntzinger
Diseases Of Modernity: What Do They Have In Common?... December 22, 2020 | Jerry Bowyer
Mobocracy December 22, 2020 | Frank Vernuccio
Beware Market Land Mines: Stimulus, Vaccine Failure, Interest Rates... December 22, 2020 | Michael Pento
Following Classical Economics December 22, 2020 | Jim Huntzinger
What Prostate Cancer Taught Me About Our Fiscal And Physical Health Code Blue... December 22, 2020 | Kevin Cullis
The War Of The Worlds December 22, 2020 | Terry Applegate
Cuomo’s Partisan Authoritarianism Struck Down By SCOTUS... December 15, 2020 | Frank Vernuccio
Join the conversation!
We have no tolerance for comments containing violence, racism, vulgarity, profanity, all caps, or discourteous behavior. Thank you for partnering with us to maintain a courteous and useful public environment where we can engage in reasonable discourse.