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excerpt by Carolyn Fluehr-Lobban, anthropologist, from The Reason for God
i’m torn…
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Anthropologists continue to express strong support for cultural relativism. One of the most contentious issues arises from the fundamental question: What authority do we Westerners have to impose our own concept of universal rights on the rest of humanity…[But] the cultural relativist’s argument is often used by repressive governments to deflect international criticism of their abuse of their citizens…I believe that we should not let the concept of relativism stop us from using national and international forums to examine ways to protect the lives and dignity of people in every culture…When there is a choice between defending human rights and defending cultural relativism, anthropologists should choose to protect and promote human rights. We cannot just be bystanders.
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