Eller offers an apology


A genuine one, this time.

Dr. Eller has offered an apology in the comments, so I wanted to share it:

This is David Eller. I realized soon after the incident that I had violated one of my own most valued principles: just as I ask atheists to stop “speaking Christian,” so I realized that I had as a male unreflectively “spoken male.” It is exceptionally difficult, as anyone will admit, to see one’s own prejudices and failings. I recognize the male privilege on which my reference was founded, and I learned something from the occasion. Actually, I learned two things during the weekend: a Jewish man reminded me that “Judeo-Christian” is a Christian-privileged way of speaking about religion, since Judaism and Christianity are really quite different. So I am more aware now of both the Christian privilege and the male privilege in my speech and thought, and I will try to overcome and eject both.


Thank you. I think he really “gets it” this time, unlike the immediate reaction after the talk. I understand that people can instinctively act defensive when called out, so I’m glad he recognized the problem after having some time to think about it, instead of getting more defensive.

I also want to say thank you to the commenters. I noticed the ratio of Understanding Support to Clueless Sexism was much better than in the past. There were only a couple “You’re just mad because you’re ugly”s and “You’re a frigid bitch who’s trying to suppress my evolved sexuality”s. Maybe I’m scaring the more sexist commenters away, but I like to think that more and more people are “getting it.”

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