Introduction to the Proceedings Issue of The Pluralist 5.3 Fall 2010

Abstract

Introduction to the Proceedings Issue of The Pluralist 5.3 Fall 2010 Jacquelyn Ann K. Kegley, President, California State University Outstanding Professor of Philosophy On behalf of the society for the Advancement of American Philosophy and with pride and pleasure, I offer to the readers of the journal a selection of papers presented at the 37th meeting of the society, sponsored by the University of North Carolina, Charlotte, and Queens University of Charlotte and held in Charlotte, North Carolina, on March 11-13, 2010. This Proceedings Issue represents the first of such issues to be published in The Pluralist, which is now the official journal of our society. The Pluralist and the Society for the Advancement of American Philosophy share a similar mission, namely to focus on pluralism and inclusion in philosophical conversation of many different points of view. In carrying out this focus, our meetings not only explore the deep roots of America's philosophical history, bringing to fore the interpretation of human experience, the critiques of American society, and the emphasis on the intimacy between thought and action contained in the work of such figures as Emerson, Thoreau, Peirce, James, Royce, Dewey, Addams, and Dubois, but also seek conversation and interaction with contemporary problems and philosophical themes and with various philosophical movements and groups as well as with international colleagues and societies. Thus, this year, our meeting included sessions presented by the Cologne Constructivist Group, the Associazione Pragma (Italy), the Society for the Study of Process Philosophy, the Society for the Study of Africana Philosophy, the Santayana Society, and the Jane Collective. There was also a panel entitled "What Is American about American Philosophy?" which featured philosopher-colleagues from Japan, Finland, and Brazil. This Proceedings issue includes the Coss Dialogue lecture, which brings in a scholar from another discipline area, in this case, from history. The response papers to the lecture are also represented. Four papers were designated [End Page 1] prize papers, respectively, the Douglas Greenlee prize, the Illa and John Mellow prize, the Joseph L. Blau prize, and the Jane Addams prize. Finally, there is the Presidential Address given by James Campbell, Professor of Philosophy, the University of Toledo and SAAP President 2008-2010. The Coss lecturer this year was Donna R. Gabaccia, Fesler-Lampert Chair in Public Humanities and Director of the Immigration History Research Center, University of Minnesota. Her article "Nations of Immigrants: Do Words Matter?" explores the question "What does it mean for a nation to call itself 'a nation of immigrants'?" This paper brings to light the fact that the United States alone makes this claim, though other nations surpass the United States in the number of immigrants who have come to their counties. This leads Dr. Gabaccia to an analysis of key phrases such as "immigrant," "emigrant," and "nation of immigrants," to discover what these central and evocative terms reveal about the society and cultures that use them. Gabaccia traces the history of these phrases as used in the United States and several other nations and concludes that "Even if 'nation of immigrants' serves to hide a long history of American restriction and exclusion, . . . it nevertheless also asserts the importance of celebrating inclusion." There were three respondents to Dr. Gabaccia's lecture. Marilyn Fischer, University of Dayton, titled her response "Keywords: What's an Advocate to Do with the Words She's Given?" Fischer gives some examples of how keywords led her to new insights about classic texts, and then discusses how Grace Abbott and Jane Addams talked about and advocated for immigrants. She asserts: "When the words the culture gave them carried messages of denigration, restriction, and exclusion, they found strategies to subvert these messages." Jose Jorge Mendoza, in his response to the Coss paper, focuses on differing ways human population movements figure in nation building. He argues that immigration is an important topic for philosophical analysis and discussion because it is an issue that "lies at the heart of the intersection between political philosophy and philosophy of race—an intersection that shows, more than anywhere else and in particular the debate surrounding the use of the word illegal. Celia Bardwell-Jones, Towson University, in her response, explores the politics...