Social Justice: Racial Slurs at BAFTA

Social Justice: Racial Slurs at BAFTA

From Practicing Stoicism by Tanner Campbell

March 4, 2026 · 7 min

About this episode

The episode examines the BAFTA awards controversy involving a racial slur and discusses it through the lens of Stoic moral philosophy.

Looking to practice Stoicism with others committed (seriously) to doing the same? Join my private community, Prokoptôn: https://skool.com/prokopton In this episode, I examine the recent BAFTA awards controversy in which a racial slur was involuntarily shouted during an award presentation by John Davidson, an advocate who lives with a form of Tourette’s syndrome known as coprolalia. Rather than approach the situation through outrage or social media reaction, I look at it through the lens of moral philosophy, particularly Stoicism. The central issue is moral responsibility. Stoic ethics — like most serious ethical systems — holds that a person can only be morally responsible for what lies within their rational control. In Stoic terms, this is what the Greeks called eph’ hēmin, “what is up to us.” If an action is involuntary and cannot be governed by reason or assent, it cannot be classified as a vice or a moral wrongdoing. Tourette’s vocal tics fall into that category. Just as we would not morally blame someone for sneezing or having a seizure, we cannot blame someone for involuntary speech produced by a neurological condition. The event may be disruptive or distressing for those…

People in this episode

Host: Tanner Campbell

Topics covered

  • Stoicism
  • moral philosophy
  • Tourette's syndrome
  • racial slurs
  • moral responsibility
  • ethics

Keywords

  • BAFTA
  • racial slurs
  • Stoicism
  • Tourette's syndrome
  • moral responsibility
  • ethics
  • involuntary speech

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: BAFTA, Prokoptôn

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