Stephen Kershnar (born 1966) is an American philosopher, a philosophy professor at the State University of New York at Fredonia (SUNY), and an attorney. In 2022, Kershnar discussed his views and a book (published 2015) which question the immorality of "adult-child sex." His comments and the subsequent backlash led to his barring from the campus and a currently pending investigation.

His research and works focus on applied ethics and political philosophy. Kershnar has written one hundred articles and book chapters on topics including abortion, adult-child sex, hell, most valuable player, pornography, punishment, sexual fantasies, slavery, and torture. He is the author of ten books, including Desert Collapses: Why No One Deserves Anything (2021), Total Collapse: The Case Against Morality and Responsibility (2018), and Abortion, Hell, and Shooting Abortion-Doctors: Does the Pro-Life Worldview Make Sense? (2017).[1]

Education and career

Kershnar completed his BA at Cornell University (1988), JD at Penn Law (1991), and PhD at the University of Nebraska (1995).[2][3] In 2006, Kershnar was initially denied promotion to full professor, after he had criticized SUNY Fredonia's new policy regarding "student conduct policies and affirmative action practices".[4][5] Thereafter, Kershnar was awarded tenure at SUNY Fredonia.

In early 2022, his arguments on "adult-child sex" in a philosophy podcast attracted criticism and led to him being banned from campus and teaching, pending an investigation.[6][7] Kershnar has received support for his academic freedom rights in connection with this controversy from both the Academic Freedom Alliance[8] and from FIRE (the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education).[9] However, the SUNY Fredonia administration faced significant pressure following Kershnar’s statements which included threats of violence, students seeking withdraw from the school, highly concerned parents, and alumni pulling funding if action was not taken. In June 2023, Kershnar filed a lawsuit against the Fredonia administration claiming violation of his first amendment rights.[10][11] An updated related news report about the incident and ongoing investigation was published in The New York Times on September 13, 2023.[12] According to The New York Times, his comments occurred "as part of a wide-ranging thought experiment about ethics and consent", and he has stated that "adult-child sex" should be criminalized.[12]

Awards

Kershnar is recipient of various faculty awards, most notably:

  • Chancellor's Award for Excellence in Teaching (2002)[13]
  • William T. and Charlotte N. Hagan Young Scholar/Artist Award (2003)[14]
  • Robert W. Kasling Lecture Award, for "Counterintuitive Morality" (2008)[15]
  • Chancellor's Award for Excellence in Scholarship and Creative Activities (2010-2011)[16]

Books

As of February 2022, Kershnar has published 12 books:[17]

  • Desert, Retribution and Torture (2001). A defence of retributivism.
  • Sex, Discrimination, and Violence: Surprising and Unpopular Results in Applied Ethics (2009). Kershnar argues for a number of controversial views, e.g., that adult-child sex is not always wrong and that professional schools may and probably should discriminate against women.
  • Desert and Virtue: A Theory of Intrinsic Value (2010). Kershnar demonstrates how desert relates to virtue, good deeds, moral responsibility, and personal change and growth through the life process.
  • For Torture: A Rights-based Defence (2012). Kershnar argues that torture is justified in a number of theoretical contexts, including defence, punishment, and when the person to be tortured consents.
  • Justice for the Past (2012). Kershnar argues that programs such as affirmative action and calls for slavery reparations are unjust.
  • Gratitude toward Veterans: Why Americans Should Not Be Very Grateful to Veterans (2014). Kershnar looks at whether veterans typically satisfy the conditions for gratitude and argues that they do not.
  • Pedophilia and Adult-Child Sex: A Philosophical Analysis (2015). Kershnar argues that it seems plausible that the criminalization of willing adult-child sex is justified but expresses concern about whether armchair evaluations of empirical effects are enough to warrant criminal punishment.
  • Does the Pro-Life Worldview Make Sense?: Abortion, Hell, and Violence Against Abortion Doctors (2017). Kershnar argues that some of the principles which Christian pro-life advocates are committed to are inconsistent.
  • Total Collapse: The Case Against Responsibility and Morality (2018). Kershnar argues that there is no morality and that people are not morally responsible for what they do. He acknowledges that the philosophical costs of denying moral responsibility and morality are enormous.

References

  1. ↑ "Dr. Stephen Kershnar". SUNY Fredonia. Retrieved February 7, 2021.
  2. ↑ "Stephen Kershnar" (PDF). University at Buffalo. August 22, 2020. Retrieved February 14, 2022.
  3. ↑ "Stephen Kershnar - Routledge & CRC Press Author Profile". Routledge. Retrieved February 14, 2022.
  4. ↑ "SUNY Fredonia Punishes Professor for Political Expression". Foundation for Individual Rights in Education. July 24, 2006. Retrieved February 14, 2022.
  5. ↑ French, David (July 27, 2006). "You Must Be Perfect . . . Or Else". National Review. Retrieved February 14, 2022.
  6. ↑ Flaherty, Colleen (February 7, 2022). "Academic Freedom Above All?". Inside Higher Ed. Retrieved February 14, 2022.
  7. ↑ "SUNY Fredonia professor reassigned after controversial adult-child sex comments". News 4 Buffalo. February 3, 2022. Retrieved March 19, 2022.
  8. ↑ "afa-sends-letter-to-suny-fredonia-regarding-stephen-kershnar". February 3, 2022. Retrieved April 22, 2022.
  9. ↑ "fire-on-kershnar-2022-2-3.pdf" (PDF). Retrieved April 22, 2022.
  10. ↑ "SUNY Fredonia professor who appeared to condone pedophilia wants back on campus". June 15, 2023. Retrieved June 17, 2023.
  11. ↑ "Controversial Kershnar Files Suit Against SUNY". post-journal.com. Retrieved October 20, 2023.
  12. 1 2 Patel, Vimal (September 13, 2023). "A Professor's Remarks on Sexual Consent Stir Controversy. Now He's Banned From Campus. - Stephen Kershnar, who teaches philosophy, is suing for the right to return to SUNY at Fredonia. The university defends its ban as necessary for safety. + comment". The New York Times. Archived from the original on September 14, 2023. Retrieved September 14, 2023.
  13. ↑ "Chancellor's Award for Excellence in Teaching 2002" (PDF). SUNY. June 21, 2002. Retrieved February 14, 2022.
  14. ↑ "William T. and Charlotte N. Hagan Young Scholar/Artist Award". SUNY Fredonia. Retrieved February 14, 2022.
  15. ↑ "Robert W. Kasling Lecture Award". SUNY Fredonia. Retrieved February 14, 2022.
  16. ↑ "Chancellor's Awards" (PDF). SUNY. May 31, 2011. p. 8. Retrieved February 14, 2022.
  17. ↑ "Books by Stephen Kershnar". Goodreads. Retrieved February 14, 2022.
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