160. The 'Justice Turn" in Science Studies: Intersecting Platforms of Social, Epistemic, Gender, Linguistic & Other Justices
Pnina Abir-Am, Brandeis University, WSRC;
We are currently witnessing a rise in both scholarship and activism regarding various platforms of justice, ranging from established ones such as social, racial, and environmental to newer ones such as epistemic, linguistic, reproductive, workplace, disability, and age-related, among others. This panel aims to explore intersections of various justice platforms, as currently undertaken by 4S members, in order to address three questions: 1) Does the "justice turn" signify a new frontier in science studies, along the lines of the "cultural turn" in the 1990s? 2) Why now, or how a critical mass of preoccupation of various forms of in/justice coalesced at the present time? 3) How best may we combine4 scholarship and activism so as to ensure that prevailing in/justices are resolved in one's lifetime. Examples of specific topics to be included in this panel are: A) Is the race to carbon neutrality, especially in the energy sector, contributes to violation of indigenous people's rights and livelihoods by focusing on the downstream carbon footprint, but ignoring the upstream costs to human communities and ecosystems? (Phyllis Muthony, Graduate student from Kenya currently at Heller School of Social Policy, Brandeis University) B) How is housing injustice for over 55 communities triggered by universities who own the land but seek different relationships with the community?
(Henry Etzkowitz, Stanford University) C) How epistemic injustice has been perpetuated for over four decades by denying recognition to women scientists? (Pnina Abir-Am, WSRC, Brandeis)
