Notion of Elite Guardian Class Dates Back to Founding of US

Noam Chomsky explores the possibilities for a better human society in What Kind of Creatures Are We?, a collection of lectures bringing together his areas of expertise from language and mind to society and politics. This book serves as both a concise summation of Chomsky's linguistic theories and a demonstration of how that work connects to his political philosophy. Order your copy by making a tax-deductible donation today!

In this excerpt from What Kind of Creatures Are We?, Noam Chomsky discusses the historical embedding of an elite "guardian class" in US society going back to the framers of the Constitution.

The Empowerment Elite Claims Feminism

At first, I wasn’t sure why TEDWOMEN—the feminist-minded spin-off of TED Talks that launched in 2010—troubled me. The San Francisco conference held this past December featured incredible speakers and performers. Swimmer Diana Nyad inspired. Poet Sarah Kay received a standing ovation. And Jane Chen—co-founder of a company that invented an affordable, portable infant-warming system for communities in India without incubators—brought this mom of a preemie to tears. But the impressive participants weren’t enough to quell my uneasiness.

It might have been the homogeneity of the audience—mostly white women with coiffed hair—or the gift bag so voluminous that it required a “gift bag guide.” Maybe it was the ticket price: nearly $1,000. (Though TED’s general conference costs more than seven times that much. Maybe this was TEDWomen’s gender-wage-gap bargain?)