Editor says post on morality of abortion ‘ falls brief,’ insensitive ,
An article about abortion that was originally accepted was later reversed in an academic journal due to concerns about the artist being a “white” “male,” according to an email from the writer obtained by The College Fix.
Philosopher Perry Hendricks ‘ article,” Abortion Restrictions Are Good for Black Women,” was first published in The New Bioethics earlier this year. However, the publication’s readers put it on hold after an intangible received censure on social media.
Hendricks has confirmed to The Fix that the book has rejected it.
In an internet Hendricks shared with The Fix on May 23, director Matthew James informed him that the book had withdrawn its decision to publish his article following a subsequent peer review process.
Due to a publisher’s complex problem, James told Hendricks he did not read the content before it was accepted, as is the common procedure. He apologized on behalf of the publication.
After reviewing the papers, James wrote he has” important problems” about its “academic value and rigour” that adjustments could not resolve.
James even brought up issues about” responsiveness” and mentioned Hendricks ‘ race and gender.
The journal’s goal is to foster debate and advance discussion, which can occasionally become contentious, like abortion, but this must be done while maintaining quality, James wrote.
” In situations such as this one, where light authors write about racial disparities, or when male writers write about women’s rights, this needs to be done with a significant amount of discretion, humility, and awareness. This book falls little in that regard”, the writer continued.
Publisher’s rules prohibit thought of writer’s race, gender
Harris claimed in an email on Sunday that the publication’s rationale conflicts with its own editorial instructions.
The gender and culture of an artist should not be taken into account when judging content, according to the editorial guidelines for Taylor and Francis Insights, which publishes the book.
According to the guidelines,” journal editors may give each text submitted for publication honest consideration.” ” They should assess each on its merits, without respect to competition, religion, ethnicity, gender, rank, or institutional involvement of the author”.
Dick once told The Fix,” It’s a little awkward to have to discuss this, but any child knows that whether an argument is sound has nothing to do with the author’s sex and culture.”
Mark Robinson, a Taylor and Francis spokesman, first responded to The Fix on Tuesday by saying some people were leaving the company and asking about the date.
The Fix inquired about the journal’s ability to verify James ‘ contact to Hendricks, and how the rejection of the content based on the journal’s contention that Hendricks is a man and white.
Roberson responded on Wednesday,” I’m afraid it wo n’t seem like I’m going to be able to make a comment at this time.” I appreciate you once more for giving us the opportunity to do so.
In a follow- off contact, The Fix offered the release more time to reply. No response was received.
Hendricks ‘ article was initially accepted by the journal on February 12. However, the article was put on hold on Feb. 15 following complaints by a reader on X, The Fix reported.
Professor: Journal let’ ignorant online mob trump ‘ peer review
Hendricks, who holds a Ph. Concerned about the role that social media outrage played in the rejection of his article, he had a PhD in philosophy and taught philosophy classes at the University of Minnesota from 2022 to 2023.
Hendricks told The Fix,” It’s unfortunate that The New Bioethics succumbed to pressure from unstable and distraught Twitter users.” Academic journals publish articles that have undergone peer review evaluation. But in this case, Twitter- review, not peer review, seems to have been a decisive factor”.
He claimed that the rumbling” took place when some academics on Twitter saw a piece of content that did n’t support their positions.” These academics should seek assistance because it’s not healthy to feel upset when someone disagrees with you, and it’s a sign of an unfortunate type of mental fragility.
Bowling Green State University philosophy professor Brandon Warmke also expressed concern about the journal’s decision in an email to The Fix on Wednesday.
” By rescinding acceptance of Dr. Hendricks ‘ paper, The New Bioethics, editor Matt James, and Taylor and Francis have made clear, not only that the journal will let an ignorant online mob trump the peer review process, but that its editor will use an author’s race and sex as a reason to reject papers”, Warmke wrote. ” This is the behavior of clowns”.
In a post on X on May 23, Warmke described the publisher’s actions as “incredibly irresponsible and juvenile”.
UPDATE: after the journal initially accepted Perry Hendricks ‘ paper on abortion, the editor of The New Bioethics, Matthew James, has decided to *rescind* the acceptance and reject the paper because people complained online.
His reason?
” when male authors write about women’s … https ://t.co/mlIZDRvNex pic. twitter.com/wlyNKNpgt I
— Brandon Warmke ( @BrandonWarmke ) May 23, 2024
The rejected article, which can be read online through PhilArchive, challenges the view that abortion restrictions harm black women. Hendricks makes the case that abortion is morally wrong in the abstract.
” This is because if someone is prevented from performing a morally wrong action, it’s good for her, “he writes”. For example, it’s good for Sarah if she’s prevented from driving home drunk.”
” However, since abortion is morally wrong, it follows that it’s good for women when they are prevented from getting an abortion. And because black women have abortions at disproportionately high rates, abortion restrictions are beneficial, particularly for black women. Indeed, this is an example of a positive effect of intersectionality,” the article states.
MORE: Journal faces ‘ legal action’ for pulling pro- life papers
IMAGE: Perry Hendricks
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