Richard Dawkins has come under fire recently for some rude, sexist comments he made. Although I like him as an atheist advocate, I am severely disappointed with his behaviour and think his reputation will take a big hit for this. Even if it doesn’t call into question his scholarship and his ability to make sound arguments, it reflects poorly on his character, judgment, and leadership ability.
The atheist movement suffers from a few shortcomings, among them a lack of clear direction and agreement about objectives, as well as a great shortage of women among its activists. If nothing else, Dawkins has managed to alienate many women with his remarks, and that alone is unpardonable.
Whether or not you think his remarks were sexist and patriarchal, his condescending and flippant tone is enough to call into question his judgment and character. I won’t say that I will no longer read any of his books or that I have lost all respect for him. I will say, however, that I have lost a lot of respect for him, and that his image as an individual and certainly as one of the leaders of the atheist movement will rightly take a tumble.
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In athe rush to stand politically crrect, I think people have lost sight of the irony in his comments. Lighten up and try to understand the point he was making.
ReplyDeleteIt seems to me Richard Dawkins wasn't being sexist at all. It seems to me Dawkins was making fun of muslim women who like defend their culture or somethin like that while women get so treated so badly in some of these societies.
ReplyDeleteI think, on the contrary that the atheist "movement" has too much leadership and does not really need any.
ReplyDeleteHonestly, not believing in any recognized religion is perfectly acceptable in most western countries, so there is not really a "cause" to defend any more.
I think those atheist conventions eerily resemble a religious movement, they are exactely what they do not want to be...
Even the "questions" people ask resemble confessions of catholic nuns about when "the call" hit them...
So I think an atheist movement is really superfluous, outside fundamentalist religious countries...
And the atheists do not need Dawkins as their pope...
I think RD was mistaken and insensitive to what it would be like to be a woman in that situation, the power dynamic, that what bothered her was more than the words used, etc.
ReplyDeleteThat being said, I don't think his response was outrageously misogynistic, even if I disagree with him and think it wasn't helpful. I wish he did get it--and maybe he now does, after the responses he received-but I have too much respect for him and for his intellectual contributions to be turned off to him by this one issue.
Btw, would you mind adding the Praxy Project to your blogroll?
>Btw, would you mind adding the Praxy Project to your blogroll?
ReplyDeleteSure. Can I ask you to return the favor?
Yup, thanks!
ReplyDeleteI never thought of Dawkins as a real leader of a real mass-movement anyway. But if you want to see a real telling testimony of his character, look on his website of how he compares likens the speaking style "the shrieking" of Rabbi Shmuley Boteach to the "shreiking" of Hitler. I watched videos of both of them, and their vocal tone, body language are styles are completely different. How then does Dawkins come to compare someone, who just happens to be an orthodox Jewish Rabbi with Hitler?? Coincidence? So who would ever take Dawkins seriously as a spokeman for humanistic good will, or progressive values, let a long as a cultural leader????
ReplyDeleteAnonymous, I was unaware that Dawkins compared Boteach to Hitler. It certainly wouldn't hurt if you provided a link. However, a quick search suggested Dawkins had definitely done so back in 2008, and my respect for him has plummeted even further.
ReplyDelete