EP 419: What is an “ethical business?” with Brooke Monaghan

At least in my corner of social media, there are a lot of folks asking what makes a business ethical. Or, perhaps more accurately, there are a lot of folks answering that question. 

And there are probably even more folks worried that there’s something unethical about the way they run their businesses. They’re afraid they haven’t checked all the ethical business boxes. 

When Brooke Monaghan emailed me to ask whether I wanted to have a messy conversation about some of the messaging around ethical, equitable, or trauma-informed businesses, I jumped on the opportunity. You see, while this is certainly not true of all messaging on these topics, much of it unintentionally replicates problematic systems and social relations. 

Capitalism always appropriates that which tries to resist it.

This episode explores a few different ways to think about the messages you’ve probably run into as you think about working or doing business differently. It’s not about calling anyone out or shaming anyone. It’s a look under the hood at some of the unexpected forces at play.

Footnotes:

• Find out more about Brooke Monaghan.
• “Does social media leave you angry?” on NPR
• Capitalist Realism by Mark Fisher
• A Spectre, Haunting by China Miéville
• “White Women/Black Women” by Phyllis Palmer
• Cultish: The Language of Fanaticism by Amanda Montell
• Utilitarian ethics
• Deontological ethics

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