Berry College should have a speech code that addresses morally devaluing speech addressed toward a specific group of people in order to establish a safe learning environment for all students while preserving healthy public debate. Establishing such a speech code would positively impact both students and faculty at Berry College by increasing both the opportunity and motivation to challenge and debate potentially offensive topics. A clear line on what is acceptable and what is not would eliminate the blurry line between beneficial and hurtful dialogue and would thereby create a more academically stimulating community. Berry College should ensure a safe learning environment for all students due to its mission to educate students from a variety of backgrounds holistically, including academically, morally and spiritually. Berry College’s declared mission and purpose is “to make an excellent private liberal-arts education accessible to talented students from a wide range of social and economic backgrounds” (Berry College Mission and Purpose). In order to provide this kind of education to all who choose to attend Berry College, the institution must inevitably create and protect an environment that allows an absence of fear or discrimination. Berry College is also committed to building character among its student body (Berry College Mission and Purpose). In order to effectively build character among all students, Berry College must not only ban hate speech for the benefit of victims but also encourage morality in all students involved. Hate speech creates an unsafe learning environment for students because of the extent of the physical, mental, and emotional harm caused to victims as well as social repercussions. As Mari Matsuda e... ... middle of paper ... ...rsonal and academic enlightenment among the Berry community. It is time that the faculty of Berry College, as academic leaders within the institution, take action for the establishment of a speech code in order to emphasize zero tolerance to vicious hate speech attacks as well as support for an environment that facilitates the exchange of ideas. Works Cited “Berry College Mission and Purpose.” Berry College, 2011. Web. 21 Sept. 2011. Hatfield, Katherine L., Kellie Shafer, and Kristopher A. Stroup. “A Dialogic Approach to Combating Hate Speech on College Campuses.” Atlantic Journal of Communication 13.1 (2005): 41-55. Matsuda, Mari. “Public Response to Hate Speech: Considered the Victim’s Story.” Michigan Law Review. 87.8 (1989): 2320-2381. “What is a Liberal Education?.” Washington, DC: Association of American Colleges and Universities.
Throughout America, people place a high value in their freedom of speech. This right is protected by the first Amendment and practiced in communities throughout the country. However, a movement has recently gained momentum on college campuses calling for protection from words and ideas that may cause emotional discomfort. This movement is driven mainly by students who demand that speech be strictly monitored and punishments inflicted on individuals who cause even accidental offense. Greg Lukianoff and Johnathan Haidt discuss how this new trend affects the students mentally and socially in their article The Coddling of the American Mind published in The Atlantic Monthly. Lukianoff and Haidt mostly use logical reasoning and references to
Although some like Conor Friedersdorf, of the Atlantic, categorized students as “intolerant bullies, (34)” meaning that the reasons for protests were not really reasons at all. Chang argues that the issues students are expressing need to be improved upon as if not, we will continue to go round and round in this vicious cycle. The addition of the apartheid in South Africa backs up Chang’s argument as there is a consensus of it being a serious issue. This explains why he included this piece of history and how it relates to college campuses. Encouraging critics to listen to students, just as Meyer did to those of color, is the only way to prevent today's youth from bring up the same issues in future years. Just as Chang predicted, the next school year brought protesters to hundreds of colleges and universities. What happened at Mizzou was just the beginning of a country wide movement for racial justice on campuses that hasn’t stopped
In the following essay, Charles R. Lawrence encompasses a number of reasons that racist speech should not be protected by the First Amendment. In this document, he exhibits his views on the subject and what he feels the society should confront these problems. In this well- written article, he provides strong evidence to prove his point and to allow the reader to see all aspects of the issue.
Baby Thesis: Schools should not be able to limit students’ online speech because cyberbullying is proven to not affect most students and teachers.
These messages may be sent verbally.... ... middle of paper ... ... The Species of the Species. The continuing significance of racism: Discrimination against Black students in White colleges.
Hate speech directs people to commit hateful crimes. The difference between hate crimes and regular crimes is that hate crimes are committed to a person because of his/her differences. Some examples of differences would be their gender, race, hair color, body shape, intelligence, sexual orientation, etc. Hate speech doesn’t have to be direct talking. Hate speech can now be down on the Internet or through magazine; and more people are using the Internet to publicize their vile beliefs. In the last five years, the number of hate crimes that have been reported to the FBI has increased by 3,743 (FBI statistics). That means that 11,690 hate crimes were reported in 2000 in only 48 states and not all police forces released their data. Imagine how many other hate crimes were committed that weren’t even reported to the police. Ethnic and racial violence or tension has decreased in Europe due to newly implemented hate speech laws (ABC News).
Benjamin Franklin once said, “Without freedom of thought, there can be no such thing as wisdom; and no such thing as public liberty, without freedom of speech.” Indeed, free speech is a large block upon which this nation was first constructed, and remains a hard staple of America today; and in few places is that freedom more often utilized than on a college campus. However, there are limitations to our constitutional liberties on campus and they, most frequently, manifest themselves in the form of free speech zones, hate speech and poor university policy. Most school codes are designed to protect students, protect educators and to promote a stable, non-disruptive and non-threatening learning environment. However, students’ verbal freedom becomes limited via “free speech zones.” Free Speech Zones are areas allocated for the purpose of free speech on campus. These zones bypass our constitutional right to freedom of speech by dictating where and when something can be said, but not what can be said.
Hurd, Heidi M. (2001). Why liberals should hate ``hate crime legislation''. Law and Philosophy 20 (2):215 - 232.
People may advocate that if there were no safe zones, students would not have a place to go where they could be protected from exposure to a hate crime. Contrary to this statement, any adept college campus should be able to effectively distinguish between students who are expressing their personal opinions and students who having a goal of undermining others. If universities are able to appropriately draw the line between discriminating and expression of opinion, then safe zones become unnecessary. Because the scale of what would be considered discriminating can be questionable and line is hard to draw, people have to take it into their own hands to be considerate of their peers. With respect and the mutual goal of personal growth, it would be possible to eliminate the idea of safe
Lieberman M, Larner J. “Hate crime laws: punishment to fit the crime. Dissent”. 2010;(3):81. Available from: Academic OneFile, Ipswich, MA. Accessed April 1, 2014.
In 1994 Renown College Professor Nikki Giovanni published a breath taking book that contains guidance to black college students on how to academically apply their selves in College, and she teaches them how to deal with the ignorance of white people from sharp tonged comebacks to gaining a Professors respect. Along the way The Article “Campus Racism 101” states Giovanni has acquired a tenure, she has a teaching position for life at the predominately white student body Virginia Tech. (Writing on the River 11) Nikki Giovanni’s “Campus Racism 101” gives advice to black students on how to succeed in College, appeals to Giovanni’s credibility, and appeals to the emotions of racism all in order to educate how black College students need to deal with ignorance on a College campus.
Critics believe that American citizens take advantage of civil liberties supporting limits on freedom of speech. They believe that degradation of humanity is inherent in unregulated speech. For example, according to Delgado and Stefancic, a larger or more authoritative person can use hate speech to physically threaten and intimidate those who are less significant (qtd. in Martin 49). Freedom of speech can also be used to demoralize ethnic and religious minorities. Author Liam Martin, points out that if one wants to state that a minority is inferior, one must prove it scientifically (45-46). Discouraging minorities can lead to retaliation, possibly resulting in crimes or threatening situations. "Then, the response is internalized, as it must be, for talking back will be futile or even dangerous. In fact, many hate crimes have taken place when the victim did just that-spoke back to the aggressor and paid with his or her life" (qtd. in Martin 49). Therefore, critics believe that Americans do not take into account the harm they may cause people and support limits on freedom of speech.
In this world today, hate is becoming increasingly more abundant, especially as it concerns race. Whether it be an unarmed black man shot by a white police officer or the use of racial slurs towards someone, it seems like racism is all around us. In the book To Kill A Mockingbird, it shows a little girl named Scout using racial slurs. Racism is so culturally accepted in the town that it’s okay to use racial slurs such as the N-Word that even Atticus, a lawyer representing a black man falsely accused of rape, uses it a couple of times. Earlier this year, the Ku Klux Klan, a group of white supremacists, held a violent rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, and proved that racism isn’t a thing of the past.
This essay considers the extent to which the U.S. should be tolerant of what can be considered damaging speech. For example, I think people should be able to have unlimited opinions with no judgments. I wonder if people are going to stop judging others by their personal experience.
Today we have looked at the problem known as hate crimes and the varied causes which keep it in existence. We have also discussed some solutions to this act of hate.