Decentering Epistemologies and Challenging Privilege Critical Care Ethics Perspectives, 2024
An expansion of the dominant Western paradigm of epistemology and a shift away from its violent c... more An expansion of the dominant Western paradigm of epistemology and a shift away from its violent core that remains vested in the colonial project is necessary in order to work towards relations of justice and repair. This shift is also necessary, I argue here, to understand subjects at the “center,” who cannot be fully grasped through their own epistemic paradigms. Having previously examined practices of privileged subjects within the international division of reproductive labor as practices of epistemic ignorance (Prattes 2020; citing Alcoff 2007), I here ask how structurally privileged White men in the global North can combat their “privileged irresponsibility” (Tronto 1993). I propose that a specific kind of epistemic ignorance that is buffered and sustained through the “outsourcing” of social reproduction might be ameliorated by learning through performing domestic and care work. I argue that embodied practices of social reproduction are a vital locus where transformation towards social, gender, and racial justice can emerge. To better grasp these processes of embodied knowledge formation and their epistemic content, I turn away from the dominant Western “epistemology of separation” (Collins 1991) with its narrowly-defined cognitive focus, and turn towards Indigenous and other epistemologies marginalized within dominant Western thought (for instance, Rey 2021; Welch 2019; Dalmiya 2016). These relational onto-ethical epistemologies can better access forms of knowing that emerge out of practices, such as the doing of social reproduction. The chapter concludes by querying how such learning from Indigenous epistemologies can avoid being extractivist and appropriative of Indigenous epistemic wealth. That is, (how) can a project that uses Indigenous frameworks to investigate the domestic practices of White privileged men break away from, rather than be continuous with, coloniality?
This article intends to stimulate conversation and critical thinking about the concept of ‘caring... more This article intends to stimulate conversation and critical thinking about the concept of ‘caring masculinities’ and its ongoing relevance to the field of critical studies of men and masculinities (CSMM). Caring masculinities is subject to debate around its theoretical premises, its potential as a feminist concept, and the limits of the empirical evidence base that underpins the concept and its associated implications. We respond to some of these ongoing critical conversations, in part by suggesting that the concept is sometimes deployed in ways that depart from or even possibly misconstrue the concept. Highlighting the nuance, capaciousness, and clarity of the concept, as theorised by Karla Elliott, we substantiate the argument by drawing on emerging data from our ongoing research with men in front-line, low paid care-work in Australia, thus, including men who have so far largely been excluded from studies on caring masculinities.
This article adds to critiques of discourses and practices of care that are enmeshed with colonia... more This article adds to critiques of discourses and practices of care that are enmeshed with coloniality. It does so via examining the prominent model of helping marginalized people through giving them the opportunity to care for themselves and their own by being recruited into paid (care) work, thus, becoming “useful” participants in society. This usefulness is read as a colonial project of subordinate inclusion into neoliberal racial capitalism. A perverse ideology of care is mobilized to extract surplus value from marginalized workers “integrated” into the lower echelons of social reproduction. Using historic and contemporary examples, the argument is developed in three steps: First, I discuss how care workers are included via subordination. Second, I analyze how an inversion of care receiver and caregiver transforms marginalized care workers into recipients of integration measures, rendering their care work invisible. Third, I show how racial usefulness, the interpellation that racialized workers be/come “useful,” is undergirded by productivism within neoliberal racial capitalism.
Karla Elliott defines caring masculinities as both embracing care and rejecting domination. Most ... more Karla Elliott defines caring masculinities as both embracing care and rejecting domination. Most work within critical studies on men and masculinities that engages with masculinities and care focuses on care yet sidelines non-domination. In order for caring masculinities to not be/come a “white” concept, this article argues for a broad grounding of caring masculinities in a rejection of all forms of domination and starts with race. Bringing research on the international division of reproductive labor together with fatherhood studies, the article illustrates systemic oppression within the field of care. It is here that privileged men manage to actualize ideals such as involved fatherhood by relying on a marginalized workforce in the coloniality of labor. A workforce that simultaneously remains locked out of involved fathering. I close by advocating not for the “inclusion” of men in the margins but for exploding the dominating power that the center holds.
In this article, I propose to look at the organisation of reproductive labour in the ‘global Nort... more In this article, I propose to look at the organisation of reproductive labour in the ‘global North’ through a lens of epistemic ignorance. Focusing on the process of outsourcing, I argue that it creates forms of irresponsibility, and with it, epistemic ignorance. The devaluation of domestic work and the degradation of domestic workers is shaped by gendered and colonial ideologies, and Western epistemologies. These epistemologies underpin a strong subject/object split and buffer the denial of existing interdependencies. I problematise those epistemologies by drawing on feminist care ethics, accounts of relational selves and relational responsibility, and alternative epistemologies. Grounding that discussion on vignettes from an in-depth study of heterosexual couples in Austrian households who outsource domestic work, I argue that the systematic failure to see what and who we are connected to in the domestic realm is shaped by gendered and racialised privilege, and driven by an episte...
Mann – Männer – Männlichkeiten: Interdisziplinäre Beiträge aus den Masculinity Studies, 2018
Im vorliegenden Beitrag widme ich mich dem Bereich der bezahlten Reproduktionsarbeit im Allgemein... more Im vorliegenden Beitrag widme ich mich dem Bereich der bezahlten Reproduktionsarbeit im Allgemeinen und der Position, die migrantische Männer als Hausarbeiter darin einnehmen, im Speziellen. Männlichen migrantische Hausarbeiter, deren Existenz bislang im wissenschaftlichen Diskurs erst zögerlich Beachtung findet, kommt eine interessante Position an der Schnittstelle von Gender, „race“, Klasse und Staatsangehörigkeit zu. Anhand der Kritik an der dominanten westlichen philosophischen bzw. rechtlichen Konstruktion des „Individuums“, die ich den Disziplinen Philosophie, Politische Theorie sowie Geschichte entnehmen, will ich zu Erhellung der spezifischen Organisation von Reproduktionsarbeit in postindustrialisierten Gesellschaften beitragen und der weit verbreiteten Ansicht, „Outsourcing“ von Reproduktionsarbeit in Privathaushalten sei in erster Linie ein „Frauenproblem“, entgegenwirken.
In this article, I propose to look at the organisation of reproductive labour in the ‘global Nort... more In this article, I propose to look at the organisation of reproductive labour in the ‘global North’ through a lens of epistemic ignorance. Focusing on the process of outsourcing, I argue that it creates forms of irresponsibility, and with it, epistemic ignorance. The devaluation of domestic work and the degradation of domestic workers is shaped by gendered and colonial ideologies, and Western epistemologies. These epistemologies underpin a strong subject/object split and buffer the denial of existing interdependencies. I problematise those epistemologies by drawing on feminist care ethics, accounts of relational selves and relational responsibility, and alternative epistemologies. Grounding that discussion on vignettes from an in-depth study of heterosexual couples in Austrian households who outsource domestic work, I argue that the systematic failure to see what and who we are connected to in the domestic realm is shaped by gendered and racialised privilege, and driven by an epistemology of separation. My argument will unfold in two steps. First, I use the concept of the skin as an example of how the beliefs in an independent, autonomous self and a strong subject/object split disguise connectedness and relationality. This leads me to the second step, in which I explicate my notion of semipermeable membranes – a thinking together of ontological permeability and ethical responsiveness. I argue that active forms of ‘unknowing’ at work in ‘mundane,’ everyday, domestic performances have far-reaching consequences.
Karla Elliott defines caring masculinities as both embracing care and rejecting domination. Most ... more Karla Elliott defines caring masculinities as both embracing care and rejecting domination. Most work within critical studies on men and masculinities that engages with masculinities and care focuses on care yet sidelines non-domination. In order for caring masculinities to not be/come a "white" concept, this article argues for a broad grounding of caring masculinities in a rejection of all forms of domination and starts with race. Bringing research on the international division of reproductive labor together with fatherhood studies, the article illustrates systemic oppression within the field of care. It is here that privileged men manage to actualize ideals such as involved fatherhood by relying on a marginalized workforce in the coloniality of labor. A workforce that simultaneously remains locked out of involved fathering. The article does not advocate for the "inclusion" of men in the margins but for exploding the dominating power that the center holds.
Decentering Epistemologies and Challenging Privilege Critical Care Ethics Perspectives, 2024
An expansion of the dominant Western paradigm of epistemology and a shift away from its violent c... more An expansion of the dominant Western paradigm of epistemology and a shift away from its violent core that remains vested in the colonial project is necessary in order to work towards relations of justice and repair. This shift is also necessary, I argue here, to understand subjects at the “center,” who cannot be fully grasped through their own epistemic paradigms. Having previously examined practices of privileged subjects within the international division of reproductive labor as practices of epistemic ignorance (Prattes 2020; citing Alcoff 2007), I here ask how structurally privileged White men in the global North can combat their “privileged irresponsibility” (Tronto 1993). I propose that a specific kind of epistemic ignorance that is buffered and sustained through the “outsourcing” of social reproduction might be ameliorated by learning through performing domestic and care work. I argue that embodied practices of social reproduction are a vital locus where transformation towards social, gender, and racial justice can emerge. To better grasp these processes of embodied knowledge formation and their epistemic content, I turn away from the dominant Western “epistemology of separation” (Collins 1991) with its narrowly-defined cognitive focus, and turn towards Indigenous and other epistemologies marginalized within dominant Western thought (for instance, Rey 2021; Welch 2019; Dalmiya 2016). These relational onto-ethical epistemologies can better access forms of knowing that emerge out of practices, such as the doing of social reproduction. The chapter concludes by querying how such learning from Indigenous epistemologies can avoid being extractivist and appropriative of Indigenous epistemic wealth. That is, (how) can a project that uses Indigenous frameworks to investigate the domestic practices of White privileged men break away from, rather than be continuous with, coloniality?
This article intends to stimulate conversation and critical thinking about the concept of ‘caring... more This article intends to stimulate conversation and critical thinking about the concept of ‘caring masculinities’ and its ongoing relevance to the field of critical studies of men and masculinities (CSMM). Caring masculinities is subject to debate around its theoretical premises, its potential as a feminist concept, and the limits of the empirical evidence base that underpins the concept and its associated implications. We respond to some of these ongoing critical conversations, in part by suggesting that the concept is sometimes deployed in ways that depart from or even possibly misconstrue the concept. Highlighting the nuance, capaciousness, and clarity of the concept, as theorised by Karla Elliott, we substantiate the argument by drawing on emerging data from our ongoing research with men in front-line, low paid care-work in Australia, thus, including men who have so far largely been excluded from studies on caring masculinities.
This article adds to critiques of discourses and practices of care that are enmeshed with colonia... more This article adds to critiques of discourses and practices of care that are enmeshed with coloniality. It does so via examining the prominent model of helping marginalized people through giving them the opportunity to care for themselves and their own by being recruited into paid (care) work, thus, becoming “useful” participants in society. This usefulness is read as a colonial project of subordinate inclusion into neoliberal racial capitalism. A perverse ideology of care is mobilized to extract surplus value from marginalized workers “integrated” into the lower echelons of social reproduction. Using historic and contemporary examples, the argument is developed in three steps: First, I discuss how care workers are included via subordination. Second, I analyze how an inversion of care receiver and caregiver transforms marginalized care workers into recipients of integration measures, rendering their care work invisible. Third, I show how racial usefulness, the interpellation that racialized workers be/come “useful,” is undergirded by productivism within neoliberal racial capitalism.
Karla Elliott defines caring masculinities as both embracing care and rejecting domination. Most ... more Karla Elliott defines caring masculinities as both embracing care and rejecting domination. Most work within critical studies on men and masculinities that engages with masculinities and care focuses on care yet sidelines non-domination. In order for caring masculinities to not be/come a “white” concept, this article argues for a broad grounding of caring masculinities in a rejection of all forms of domination and starts with race. Bringing research on the international division of reproductive labor together with fatherhood studies, the article illustrates systemic oppression within the field of care. It is here that privileged men manage to actualize ideals such as involved fatherhood by relying on a marginalized workforce in the coloniality of labor. A workforce that simultaneously remains locked out of involved fathering. I close by advocating not for the “inclusion” of men in the margins but for exploding the dominating power that the center holds.
In this article, I propose to look at the organisation of reproductive labour in the ‘global Nort... more In this article, I propose to look at the organisation of reproductive labour in the ‘global North’ through a lens of epistemic ignorance. Focusing on the process of outsourcing, I argue that it creates forms of irresponsibility, and with it, epistemic ignorance. The devaluation of domestic work and the degradation of domestic workers is shaped by gendered and colonial ideologies, and Western epistemologies. These epistemologies underpin a strong subject/object split and buffer the denial of existing interdependencies. I problematise those epistemologies by drawing on feminist care ethics, accounts of relational selves and relational responsibility, and alternative epistemologies. Grounding that discussion on vignettes from an in-depth study of heterosexual couples in Austrian households who outsource domestic work, I argue that the systematic failure to see what and who we are connected to in the domestic realm is shaped by gendered and racialised privilege, and driven by an episte...
Mann – Männer – Männlichkeiten: Interdisziplinäre Beiträge aus den Masculinity Studies, 2018
Im vorliegenden Beitrag widme ich mich dem Bereich der bezahlten Reproduktionsarbeit im Allgemein... more Im vorliegenden Beitrag widme ich mich dem Bereich der bezahlten Reproduktionsarbeit im Allgemeinen und der Position, die migrantische Männer als Hausarbeiter darin einnehmen, im Speziellen. Männlichen migrantische Hausarbeiter, deren Existenz bislang im wissenschaftlichen Diskurs erst zögerlich Beachtung findet, kommt eine interessante Position an der Schnittstelle von Gender, „race“, Klasse und Staatsangehörigkeit zu. Anhand der Kritik an der dominanten westlichen philosophischen bzw. rechtlichen Konstruktion des „Individuums“, die ich den Disziplinen Philosophie, Politische Theorie sowie Geschichte entnehmen, will ich zu Erhellung der spezifischen Organisation von Reproduktionsarbeit in postindustrialisierten Gesellschaften beitragen und der weit verbreiteten Ansicht, „Outsourcing“ von Reproduktionsarbeit in Privathaushalten sei in erster Linie ein „Frauenproblem“, entgegenwirken.
In this article, I propose to look at the organisation of reproductive labour in the ‘global Nort... more In this article, I propose to look at the organisation of reproductive labour in the ‘global North’ through a lens of epistemic ignorance. Focusing on the process of outsourcing, I argue that it creates forms of irresponsibility, and with it, epistemic ignorance. The devaluation of domestic work and the degradation of domestic workers is shaped by gendered and colonial ideologies, and Western epistemologies. These epistemologies underpin a strong subject/object split and buffer the denial of existing interdependencies. I problematise those epistemologies by drawing on feminist care ethics, accounts of relational selves and relational responsibility, and alternative epistemologies. Grounding that discussion on vignettes from an in-depth study of heterosexual couples in Austrian households who outsource domestic work, I argue that the systematic failure to see what and who we are connected to in the domestic realm is shaped by gendered and racialised privilege, and driven by an epistemology of separation. My argument will unfold in two steps. First, I use the concept of the skin as an example of how the beliefs in an independent, autonomous self and a strong subject/object split disguise connectedness and relationality. This leads me to the second step, in which I explicate my notion of semipermeable membranes – a thinking together of ontological permeability and ethical responsiveness. I argue that active forms of ‘unknowing’ at work in ‘mundane,’ everyday, domestic performances have far-reaching consequences.
Karla Elliott defines caring masculinities as both embracing care and rejecting domination. Most ... more Karla Elliott defines caring masculinities as both embracing care and rejecting domination. Most work within critical studies on men and masculinities that engages with masculinities and care focuses on care yet sidelines non-domination. In order for caring masculinities to not be/come a "white" concept, this article argues for a broad grounding of caring masculinities in a rejection of all forms of domination and starts with race. Bringing research on the international division of reproductive labor together with fatherhood studies, the article illustrates systemic oppression within the field of care. It is here that privileged men manage to actualize ideals such as involved fatherhood by relying on a marginalized workforce in the coloniality of labor. A workforce that simultaneously remains locked out of involved fathering. The article does not advocate for the "inclusion" of men in the margins but for exploding the dominating power that the center holds.
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