Friday, December 12, 2014

Students Demand Censorship of George Will, Won't Listen to Someone They Don't Like

Students Demand Censorship of George Will, Won't Listen to Someone They Don't Like - Hit & Run : Reason.com:
"Another day, another group of insolent students demanding that their university censor a prominent speaker and deprive the rest of campus of the opportunity to learn from him.
George Will is slated to give Michigan State University's fall semester commencement address on December 13th and receive an honorary degree from the university.
But because one of the thousands of columns he has written in his life was deemed controversial by those on the far-left side of the campus sexual assault issue, some students want him disinvited from campus
........Of course, whether one agrees with an invited speaker entirely, partly, or not at all is beside the point.
In fact, a strong case can be made that it is even more important to hear from notable people whose views differ from one's own—especially on campuses, where opportunities to hear opinions critical of liberalism are in short supply.
...More than 70,000 people signed the petition, started by the women’s rights advocacy group UltraViolet, which has called Will a “rape apologist.”
MSU President Lou Anna Simon, at least, has refused to disinvite Will.....
Indeed, "disinvitation season," as Foundation for Individual Rights in Education President Greg Lukianoff calls it, shows no sign of winding down.
The problem of universities cancelling speakers on behalf of censorship-inclined students may even be worsening.
If a liberal arts education has any purpose, it is to teach students the importance of Enlightenment values like free speech, tolerance, and rational debate.
When students demand that authorities silence dissenting views, they unintentionally demonstrate that they don't deserve the diplomas they are about to receive.

No comments: