Graduate Studies

 

First Advisor

Jennifer McKitrick

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)

Committee Members

Aaron Bronfman, Courtney Hillebrecht, John Brunero

Department

Philosophy (Human Rights and Humanitarian Affairs)

Date of this Version

2-2025

Document Type

Dissertation

Citation

A dissertation presented to the faculty of the Graduate College at the University of Nebraska in partial fulfillment of requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy

Major: Philosophy (Human Rights and Humanitarian Affairs)

Under the supervision of Professor Jennifer McKitrick

Lincoln, Nebraska, February 2025

Comments

Copyright 2025, Talhah Mustafa. Used by permission

Abstract

This dissertation will be divided into three papers that in some way considers the concept of racial powers. The concept of racial power is under-researched and presupposed in the Philosophy of Race literature. Many arguments in this field seem premature without a general understanding of racial powers. The first paper fills that gap by introducing and defending the view that racial powers are possessed in virtue of one’s race or perceived race.

In the second paper, I consider Chike Jeffers’ cultural constructionist account of race. The nature of race is complex, requiring nuanced consideration. Chike Jeffers’ cultural constructionist may seem intuitive but, as I will show, it faces three critical issues: (1) it unnecessarily splits races, (2) it has a demarcation problem, and (3) it creates outliers who may become race-less or culture-less. I argue that cultural constructionism must be considered alongside sociopolitical constructionism to avoid these issues.

In the third and final paper of the dissertation, I consider the key role hierarchies play in racial categories. Social constructionists argue that race would not exist without hierarchical arrangement. However, there is another hierarchy that is often overlooked. This paper examines the other hierarchy and explores whether race could disappear if all racial categories were hierarchically equal on all hierarchies.

Advisor: Jennifer McKitrick

Share

COinS