Should Michel Foucault Be Cancelled?
Serious allegations have surfaced about the French philosopher
The Times recently published an article within which allegations were made by the French-American academic Guy Sorman, against fellow French academic Michel Foucault, who died from HIV/AIDS complications in 1984. Sorman alleges that Foucault was a paedophile, who abused prepubescent boys in Tunisia, where he lived and worked in 1969.
Sorman states that he personally witnessed Foucault exchanging money for sex with these boys. Although no victims have yet come forward to substantiate Sorman’s claims, moments from Foucault’s life and work do not reflect favourably on his reputation. Sorman’s allegations, along with extracts from Foucault’s books which defend paedophilia against arguments that it is immoral, yield evidence for the case that Foucault was a paedophile.
Although this evidence does not prove he was a paedophile, it is evidence that must be taken into account, and which should change how his work is read. However, this evidence does not mean that his work should not be read at all.
In today’s world, when people are judged to have crossed a moral line, they are “cancelled” from our cultures. Certain sections of our societies refuse to engage with the work of those who are judged to have…
