202206052203 Overton window

Named for its inventor, Joseph Overton, an Overton window is the range of “acceptability” a political idea has at any given time.¹

Some ideas’ windows move over time. For example same-sex marriage used to be unthinkable and now is politically possible and recognized by the law of the land.

This concept has an interesting application to 202206051528 Moral Philosophy. The political scientist James C. Scott contends that small trangressions against the law (for instance jaywalking) are necessary exercises for us to routinely do in order to be able to later act morally when called upon to overthrow laws that are unjust.

Another intersection with moral philosophy is that we may accidentally shift our thinking about the wrongness of small transgressions over time resulting in our willful ignorance that they are still wrong. We must not let our window slip, but rather continually acknowledge that there are times and places where minor wrongs are harmless.

A great example of this are the many American sports teams with names and mascots that are racist against indigenous people.