Faculty

Tracy Llanera: Institute of Art and Ideas – London

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Check out Associate Professor Tracy Llanera’s newest piece, “Everything doesn’t happen for a reason: The myth of modern stoicism.” You can check out the piece on IAI’s website for free.

Below is an excerpt of the article:

When I was younger, hearing “everything happens for a reason” while lying face-down in the muck made me uncomfortable. Now, it sets me off. The reason is simple: the idea that every little thing is set in stone is a morally misguided philosophy. It suggests that all kinds of pain and suffering are unavoidable, that the injustices and cruelties plaguing our short lives are not only inescapable but in some ludicrous way even deserved, and that there’s nothing we can do differently as human beings to change our fate. These are the loaded claims behind “it’s meant to be” and “it is what it is,” colloquialisms of fatalist, unreflective stoicism tendered by well-meaning souls.

Congratulations, Tracy!

Michael Lynch: Psychology Today

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In preparation for the launch of his new book On Truth in Politics: Why Democracy Demands It, Professor Michael Patrick Lynch has written two articles on Psychology Today addressing the state of political truth in modern democracy.

 

His first article, “Why Does Everything Seem Political?” defines and discusses political meaning:

Political meaning, in particular, emerges from the associations communities attach to things. Politics is an activity aimed at resolving collective problems among communities. It reflects the perceived contributions of actions, objects, or ideas to political debates. In this sense, political meaning is all about perception.

 

While his second article, “Has Meta’s Fact-Checking Exit Put Truth at Risk?” directly confronts media company Meta (owner of Facebook, Instagram, Threads, and WhatsApp) newest decision that will end anti-disinformation programs across their sites:

In its recent announcement, Meta declared that it is ending its anti-disinformation program, stating a commitment to “more speech and fewer mistakes” (Meta, 2025). Given the size and global reach of their platforms, this is not just a blow against systematic and professional fact-checking online; it is a blow against the very idea of fact-checking—and that’s a problem for democracy.

 

You can pre-order his new book, On Truth in Politics: Why Democracy Demands It on Bookshop or Amazon.

Congratulations, Michael!

On Truth in Politics: Why Democracy Demands It

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Michael Patrick Lynch, Author

Princeton University Press, 2025

Do any of us really care about truth when it comes to politics? Should we? In a world of big lies, denialism, and conspiracy theories, democracies are experiencing two interlocked crises: a loss of confidence in democracy itself and the growing sense among many that politics is only about power—not truth. In this book, Michael Patrick Lynch argues that truth not only can—but must—matter in politics. He shows why truth is an essential democratic value—a value we need to sustain our democratic way of life—and how it can be strengthened.

Despite evidence that people are rarely motivated by truth when it comes to politics, On Truth in Politics argues that this isn’t inevitable. Accessibly written and rigorously argued, it draws on the American pragmatist tradition to develop an original theory of the nature and value of truth in the messy world of politics. Contrary to the belief of many, political beliefs can be true or false. But if democracy is to continue to be a space of reason and not just an arena of power, we must build a better infrastructure of knowledge, including stronger schools and media, and renew our commitment to science and history.

A vital and timely book, On Truth in Politics makes an original case for why democracy cannot survive without truth.

Book cover of Michael Lynch's book On Truth In Politics: Why Democracy demands it

Ting-an Lin: Common Curriculum Grant

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Congratulations to Assistant Professor of Philosophy Ting-an Lin, whose two new course proposals, “Markets, Ethics, and Society” and “Ethics of Technology and Engineering,” were recently awarded the new Common Curriculum Grant. This grant supplies funding to faculty members who are creating courses that will be implemented into the new Common Curriculum for Leadership and Global Citizenship.

 

The Common Curriculum program, slated for a Fall 2025 introduction, provides students with a foundation for future learning. Ensuring that all students at the University of Connecticut are literate in many different types of knowledge, the Common Curriculum allows for students to enter society with a strong sense of moral and social responsibility.

Jane Gordon: “Creolising the State?”

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We are thrilled to share that our affiliated faculty member and Professor in Political Science, Jane Gordon, has recently published an article titled “Creolising the State?” in Theoria: A Journal of Social and Political Theory. This prestigious journal is one of the top publications in the field, both in South Africa and globally.

You can read the article here: Theoria: A Journal of Social and Political Theory.

Please join us in congratulating Professor Gordon on this incredible achievement!

Dorit Bar-On: APA 2025 Pacific Division Meeting

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At this year’s APA Pacific Division Meeting, Professor of Philosophy Dorit Bar-On will be holding an Author Meets Critics session on her recently published book, Expression and Self-Knowledge. This book, co-authored by Crispin Wright, was published as part of Wiley-Blackwell’s Great Debates in Philosophy series. An excerpt from the book’s description can be found below:

In Expression and Self-Knowledge, Dorit Bar-On and Crispin Wright articulate their joint dissatisfaction with extant accounts of self-knowledge and engage in a sustained and substantial critical debate over the merits of an expressivist approach to the topic. The authors incorporate cutting-edge research while defending their own alternatives to existing approaches to so-called ‘first-person privilege’.

In addition, one of our incredible graduate students, Michael Hegarty, has also been invited to chair the session.

The meeting will be held in San Francisco, California starting on April 16th and through April 19th.

Congratulations, Dorit and Michael!

William Lycan on Mind, Meaning, and Method

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Mitchell Green, Co-editor

Palgrave MacMillan, 2024

William Lycan is an internationally renowned American philosopher whose work since the late 1960s has been not only extensive but also influential, particularly in the areas of philosophy of mind, epistemology, philosophy of language, metaphysics, and more recently metaphilosophy. This contributed volume features high-quality contributions by prominent or up-and-coming philosophers who critically examine many aspects of Lycan’s work; it also contains an essay by Lycan responding to these contributions. In this way, not only is the importance of William Lycan’s work appreciated, it is also made accessible for further research. The book is also suitable for teaching purposes at universities.

Cover of William Lycan on Mind, Meaning, and Method.

Law, Politics, and Responding to Injustice

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Ting-an Lin, Contributor

Taylor and Francis, 2024

Chapter 9: “Acting Together to Address Structural Injustice: A Deliberative Mini-public Proposal”

Structural injustices exist when the impact of social structure exposes some groups of people to undeserved burdens while conferring unearned power to others. It has been argued that the responsibility for addressing structural injustices is shared among all the participants of the wrongful social structures and can only be discharged through collective action; however, the proper form of collective action does not happen easily. This chapter contributes to the discussions on addressing structural injustice in two steps. First, it categorizes three forms of practical challenges encountered by existing proposals for discharging shared responsibility for structural injustice. Second, it proposes an alternative proposal based on a type of political institution named deliberative mini-publics, which involves a diverse group of people convening to deliberate on issues of public concern and produce results that can be used as guidance for the greater public in responding to those issues. The deliberative mini-public proposal suggests establishing multiple deliberative mini-publics and making participation in the mini-publics a civic duty to address issues of structural injustice. This chapter argues that the deliberative mini-public proposal has the potential to complement existing proposals in mobilizing structural change and overcoming the identified practical challenges.

Cover of "Law, Politics, and Responding to Injustice."

Lewis Gordon: Tavis Smiley

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Check out Distinguished Professor Lewis Gordon’s recent media appearance on the Tavis Smiley podcast. Dr. Gordon has worked with Tavis Smiley in the past, discussing topics such as political extremism, black consciousness, and more. In this episode, Smiley and Gordon discuss racial justice and anti-blackness policies, centering the argument around how we can cultivate Black consciousness without fear.

 

Congratulations, Lewis!