Posted on 04/15/2023 5:44:00 AM PDT by karpov
Not so long ago, free speech on college campuses was not a matter of controversy. Of course, there were heated disputes over what people said, but everyone accepted that people were entitled to speak their minds—and then face criticism as those who disagreed spoke theirs. Sadly, that has changed dramatically.
The first prominent dissent as to the value of free speech came from Professor Herbert Marcuse, who argued in 1969 that campuses (and society) should not tolerate some speech. In particular, Marcuse, a Marxist, said that speech that supported existing socioeconomic arrangements should be suppressed so that dissident voices could be heard.
Today, we find many academics echoing Marcuse and calling for severe restrictions on “hate speech,” which could mean any communication they find disagreeable. And we still find many who advocate unrestricted freedom of speech, agreeing with Justice Louis Brandeis that the remedy for bad speech is more speech.
Taking a position roughly in the middle is University of Pennsylvania political-science professor Sigal R. Ben-Porath. Her recent book Cancel Wars: How Universities Can Foster Free Speech, Promote Inclusion, and Renew Democracy is pro-free speech, but hedged with lots of caveats. While college officials should allow it, they also need to shelter supposedly vulnerable students from speech that might be “painful.”
The book has some useful ideas regarding campus speech, but on the whole, it will do more to bolster the side that wants to crack down on speech that zealous students and faculty members regard as “harmful” and “exclusionary.” By conceding that campus officials have to take action when certain things are said, Ben-Porath opens the door to aggressive speech enforcers. That’s not what she wants, but it is what will happen.
(Excerpt) Read more at jamesgmartin.center ...
BTTT
If speech harms a student then they are not mature enough to be in college.
Exactly.
What a stupid premise.
“Professor Herbert Marcuse, who argued in 1969 that campuses (and society) should not tolerate some speech. In particular, Marcuse, a Marxist, said that speech that supported existing socioeconomic arrangements should be suppressed so that dissident voices could be heard.”
Of course, today, the dissident voices are suppressed — and that is OK with the left.
“The issue is never the issue. The issue is always the revolution.”
Kick the little snowflakes out. They’ll be safe back in moms basement.
L
These Marxists may act like ultrasensensitives, but they’d toss conservatives into cattle cars without a second thought if they had their druthers.
Agreed. I think it was George Carlin during a supposed comedy bit uttered these words…”words wound!” Effin’ pussy I thought at the time, and people actually laughed but you could tell that they believed what he was saying. I really despise liberals.
George Orwell’s 1984 book THE PRINCIPELLS OF NEWSSPEAK covers the college campuses agenda and all the madness connected to it.
Lemmings
One imagines that debate teams can no longer practice their craft. Being on a debate team used to be a favorable qualifier on a college application; being captain, even more so. Lord only knows the punishments in store for debaters in today’s universities.
Seems it was just a matter of time:
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