Ten Black Philosophers That Should Be Taught In Schools
I teach philosophy to teenagers. Our journey through philosophical history goes something like this: Aristotle — Boethius — Aquinas — Descartes — Hume — Kant — Russell — Singer. There are others, of course, but you get the picture: it’s very European and very male.
On a basic level, it is what it is. You cannot do justice to philosophy and not teach western philosophy and you cannot teach western philosophy without discussing these giants in the field. This overwhelming Eurocentrism (and its accompanying androcentism) is, however, no longer acceptable in the modern teaching of philosophy. Philosopher Queens is a good example of a timely corrective.
Here are ten black philosophers teachers could include in their courses. There are, of course, many more. The aim was to have a range across history and to include indigenous, diaspora, and female voices. (A future article will include Asian, indigenous, and Latinx philosophers.)
1. Ptahhotep (2375–2350 BC)
Ptahotep was a vizier in Old Kingdom Egypt. His maxims are an example of a genre called “wisdom literature.” They are a set of instructions describing rules of behaviour and include such maxims as:
- “Punish with principle, teach meaningfully. The act of stopping evil leads to the…
