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Washington Ethical Society
7750 16th Street, NW
Washington, DC 20012
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Why respect the worth of people who violate other people? 
Ethical Culturists see human worth as the source of good behavior rather than the prize awarded for it. We need faith in human worth, especially when people act destructively, to look beneath particular behaviors and find the human capacity for goodness.
Individuals must protect themselves and each other from treatment that disrespects human worth. Every act that is unkind, unfair, or dishonest damages people and cannot be justified even toward a person who is guilty of wrongdoing. We cultivate an ethical society when we impose consequences that restore respect for human worth and awaken the inner longing to create a more humane world. Consider what kind of world we live in when we assume that some individuals, based on their bad behavior, lack human worth: Those found "unworthy" would be "justifiably" subjected to less humane treatment. We would all have to continually prove ourselves or risk being stripped of human dignity. Our mistakes and destructive feelings would make us uncertain of our own worthiness. Our self-doubts would blind us to the capacities for goodness within ourselves. This would lead us to become resigned to the worst behaviors from ourselves and others because we would no longer be looking for the good possibilities within human nature. To transform our hostile habits and relationships we need faith in the human capacity for goodness. |
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