Cultural norms and the danger of parochial moral absolutism

[markpkessinger]

If the kerfuffle over the Dalai Lama's interaction with a young boy demonstrates anything, it should be to drive home the danger and folly of viewing the customs of a foreign culture through a lens of moral absolutism grounded in the values of our own culture only, even, and especially, when we are a little too arrogantly sure that our society's values are oh-so-enlightened. Reading some of the comments on this board made me think that perhaps all of us are in need of a refresher in Anthropology 101!

The reality is that customs that look very weird and inappropriate in the context of our culture might be thoroughly appropriate in the context of another. (If you haven't yet watched the video posted by Richard D in which a young Tibetan man explains the context for kissing on the lips and sticking out tongues, I urge you to do so (see https://www.democraticunderground.com/1017820070 ).

The important thing to remember is that a gesture that seems, and indeed may be, wildly inappropriate in one cultural context can be utterly benign in another. And when we lose sight of that, even the most progressive among us can wind up looking like cultural boors!

[Irish_Dem]

1. We have a right to ask questions.

Especially when it comes to members of a religious community and young children.

I grew up in a church were children were routinely molested by priests.
I would be foolish not to at least ask a question or two when something doesn't look right.

I was also in a profession for 40 years with a mandated duty to warn and protect.
Not going to start keeping my head in the sand now.

If some behavior is cultural, fine, but we have a right to ask about it.

[markpkessinger]

2. Absolutely. . . .

. . . But we shouldn't jump to the worst possible conclusions before we've received answers to those quesrtions.

[Just A Box Of Rain]

4. One would expect that would go without saying, but sadly it needs to be said.

Jumping to the worst possible conclusions without seeking answers seems like the mode of the day.

[Just A Box Of Rain]

3. Right you are.

There was an extreme rush to judgement here on DU that did not make this forum look good at all, with a complete lack of cultural sensitivity over how this interaction might be viewed very differently by Tibetans.

The mode of the week here seems to branding people with long histories of goodwill as suffering from dementia (at best), or in the case of the Dalai Lama, a pervert at worst.

Suggesting it makes some look like "cultural boors" is rather an understatement.