So I don't know how well it works to take a small group and to say "if society shared some of these values, then this problem would go away." It probably doesn't, because for instance many of our social groups aren't thieves, and we can't sit here and be like "gee if everyone was like this group, theft would go away."
But I can't help but feel like there's something to it when it comes to things like making value judgments (like avoiding racism, or avoiding misogyny, things like this). Nobody in my circles of friends (plural, even the ones that I didn't make from my younger days when I worked at the clubs) negatively judges sex workers: they don't consider it dehumanizing; they would treat a sex worker exactly the same way they would treat anyone else regardless of whether they would use the sex worker's services or not.
If circles of friends can be like a community (and in many ways, I think they can), then it just goes to show that a lot of the hate and dehumanization humans do is absolutely unnecessary. If everyone were like my friends, sex workers would live dignified lives. Nobody would care how they make their living if they aren't hurting anyone. It wouldn't bring down society. I don't understand these arguments about how it's so inherently wicked because it really just isn't. The wickedness comes from the dehumanization, which comes from outside; it comes from other people. Just like racism comes from outside, comes from other people, and so on.
But I can't help but feel like there's something to it when it comes to things like making value judgments (like avoiding racism, or avoiding misogyny, things like this). Nobody in my circles of friends (plural, even the ones that I didn't make from my younger days when I worked at the clubs) negatively judges sex workers: they don't consider it dehumanizing; they would treat a sex worker exactly the same way they would treat anyone else regardless of whether they would use the sex worker's services or not.
If circles of friends can be like a community (and in many ways, I think they can), then it just goes to show that a lot of the hate and dehumanization humans do is absolutely unnecessary. If everyone were like my friends, sex workers would live dignified lives. Nobody would care how they make their living if they aren't hurting anyone. It wouldn't bring down society. I don't understand these arguments about how it's so inherently wicked because it really just isn't. The wickedness comes from the dehumanization, which comes from outside; it comes from other people. Just like racism comes from outside, comes from other people, and so on.