It’s a big weekend for DERPs and their conferences.

You may recall (as I indicated here) that DERPs is the acronym for Disabled Exclusionary Righteous Philosophers, the term that I coined to refer to philosophers who (apparently without shame) variously organize, attend, participate in, promote, or fund inaccessible– that is, exclusionary–and unsustainable philosophy conferences. Here are a couple of biggies taking place this weekend:

First, the (inaccessible/exclusionary) Feminist Ethics and Social Theory Conference, (ironically themed) “Accountability and Transformative Justice,” will take place this weekend in Orlando, Florida. I suspect that some of the feminist DERPs at this conference will be hiding behind their sunglasses out of belated embarrassment!

Second, the (inaccessible/exclusionary) Public Philosophy Network conference (also ironically themed), “Public Philosophy and Social Change: Legacies, Grassroots, and New Directions,” will take place in my neighbourhood of Hamilton, Ontario. The DERP luminaries at the conference and at the “Ask a Philosopher” booth in the adjoining Hamilton Market can rest assured that the market’s glass enclosure will keep them safe from the disabled people, homeless people, and other riff raff who live here, even on the sidewalk right outside of the market!

Stay tuned to BIOPOLITICAL PHILOSOPHY because more conferences for DERPs are predictably on the horizon, as some of them are eager for you to know. For example, recently Aidan McGlynn, one of the editors of Hypatia, has, on social media, eagerly promoted a number of exclusionary conferences taking place in the UK next year, including the annual Society of Applied Philosophy conference. As Jon Cameron, the administrator of the Society, candidly announced on the Philosophy in Europe listserv in the past week “The conference will be an in-person event (i.e. no hybrid / online attendance or presentation options will be available)”. SHAME on you, Applied DERPs!