Cat‐Calls, Compliments and Coercion

Abstract

Abstract In this paper, I offer a novel argument for why cat‐calling is wrong. After warding off the objection that cat‐calls are compliments and therefore morally benign, I show that it cannot be the semantic content of cat‐calls which makes cat‐calling wrong, because some cat‐calls have seemingly benign content yet seem to wrong their targets (usually women and LGBTQ people) nonetheless. Instead, cat‐calling is wrong because it silences targets, by preventing them from blocking cat‐callers' presuppositions of authority, and exploits them, by forcing them into the demeaning position of acting as if they consider cat‐callers to have authority over them.

Topics & Concepts