2019 Public Philosophy Op-Ed Contest Results

The American Philosophical Association (APA) has announced the winners of its 2019 Public Philosophy Op-Ed Contest.

[Keith Haring – “We The Youth” (detail)]

The contest, run by the APA’s Committee on Public Philosophy, aims to recognize “up to five standout pieces that successfully blend philosophical argumentation with an op-ed writing style. Winning submissions will call public attention, either directly or indirectly, to the value of philosophical thinking. The pieces will be judged in terms of their success as examples of public philosophy, and should be accessible to the general public, focused on important topics of public concern, and characterized by sound reasoning,” according to the APA.

The winners this year are:

Brendan de Kenessey (University of Toronto) for “People are dying because we misunderstand how those with addiction think” at
Vox.com.
Benjamin Mitchell-Yellin (Sam Houston State University) for “The Mirror Test and the Problem of Understanding Other Minds” at
Psychology Today
Amia Srinivasan (St. John’s College, Oxford) for “Does anyone have the right to sex?” at The London Review of Books
Bryan Van Norden (Vassar College) for “The Ignorant Do Not Have a Right to an Audience” at The Stone (The New York Times)
Karina Vold (University of Cambridge) for “Are ‘you’ just inside your skin or is your smartphone part of you?” at Aeon Magazine

You can learn more about the prize and see the list of previous winners here.