Typecasts, tokens, and spokespersons: A case for credibility excess as testimonial injustice

E Davis - Hypatia, 2016 - cambridge.org
E Davis
Hypatia, 2016cambridge.org
Miranda Fricker maintains that testimonial injustice is a matter of credibility deficit, not
excess. In this article, I argue that this restricted characterization of testimonial injustice is too
narrow. I introduce a type of identity‐prejudicial credibility excess that harms its targets qua
knowers and transmitters of knowledge. I show how positive stereotyping and prejudicially
inflated credibility assessments contribute to the continued epistemic oppression of
marginalized knowers. In particular, I examine harms such as typecasting, compulsory …
Miranda Fricker maintains that testimonial injustice is a matter of credibility deficit, not excess. In this article, I argue that this restricted characterization of testimonial injustice is too narrow. I introduce a type of identity‐prejudicial credibility excess that harms its targets qua knowers and transmitters of knowledge. I show how positive stereotyping and prejudicially inflated credibility assessments contribute to the continued epistemic oppression of marginalized knowers. In particular, I examine harms such as typecasting, compulsory representation, and epistemic exploitation and consider what hearers are obligated to do in response to these injustices. I argue that because epistemic harms to marginalized knowers also arise from prejudicially inflated assessments of their credibility, the virtue of testimonial justice must be revised to remedy them.
Cambridge University Press