Cultural relativism

Cultural relativism is a concept within anthropology and social sciences that posits the idea that all cultural beliefs, customs, and ethics are relative to the individual within their own social context. In other words, 'right' and 'wrong' are culturally specific; what is considered moral in one society may be seen as immoral in another, and, therefore, there is no one standard by which we can compare and judge practices. In a philosophical context, this concept is related to moral relativism and postmodernism which oppose alternative concepts such as moral objectivism and modernism.

Cultural relativism promotes understanding and tolerance, encouraging individuals to consider differing cultural norms and values in their contexts before passing judgments, which may help people and countries to coexist together even if they don’t always agree on everything.

However, cultural relativism also raises several intellectual and moral concerns. For instance, critics argue that cultural relativism may lead to a moral vacuum, where any cultural practice cannot be critiqued or intervened upon, potentially providing a cover for human rights abuses. Even though it might be hard to agree on the exact details of human rights, most people can still tell obvious abuses when they see them and they should be able to speak up or take action when certain lines are crossed.

Some of the questions we will tackle at this event: