About this Event

***This event is being hosted in collaboration with Bristol University Philosophy Society***



Dogwhistles and Figleaves: Techniques of Racist Linguistic Manipulation



Until recently, it was widely believed that explicit expressions of racism would doom a political candidacy in the United States. Yet nonetheless racism was a frequently used tool that won many elections.



This talk examines one of the methods, the dogwhistle, that allowed such racist electoral victories. It then turns to the present day, in which explicit racism is proving remarkably successful. Here I explore a different linguistic technique, the fig leaf, which I take to have enabled this success.



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The Richmond Lectures are the University's flagship public lecture series. Now in their third year, they aim to promote cross-disciplinary discussion by hosting leading thinkers and speakers.



The Richmond Lectures are made unique by the fact that speakers are nominated and invited solely by students.



The series takes place each year at the Richmond Building, home of the Students' Union, and are free to attend for students, staff, and the public.



Find out more about previous and upcoming speakers here at www.bristolsu.org.uk/richmondlectures