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I’m seeing a lot of commentary about EJMR circulating again and the “just ignore it, they’re probably just undergrad trolls, they’re not really a part of our profession” sentiment is common. I think that gives the diacipline a pass it doesn’t deserve.
The reality is that we don’t know, and assuming that these people are unaffiliated is what’s comfortable. It allows us to distance ourselves from the racism, sexism, homophobia that runs rampant there.
The few times my curiosity has gotten the better of me and I’ve looked to see what’s being said there, plenty of users described themselves as undergrads and plenty described themselves as grad students or professors. These descriptions seemed plausible to me.
Furthermore, econ undergrads who frequent the forum are probably thinking about grad school, yeah? They’ve been educated by our discipline and they think its culture will be hospitable to their (often disgusting) ideas.
Dismissing the EJMR trolls as “not part of the discipline” encourages us to avoid the tough conversations about why we attract people who think this way. I think it’s unproductive and lazy.
To be clear, I’m sure it’s well-meaning and it’s partially intended to make the targets of said racism/sexism/homophobia feel better about what they’re getting themselves into. But I think it leads us to just avoid the underlying problem.
