Heard a professor say free speech is just a 'white comfort tool' and I had to walk out

I sat in on a polisci lecture last Tuesday at my school in Portland because a friend invited me. The professor started talking about campus free speech and called it basically a tool for white people to feel comfortable while ignoring real harm. I get that speech can hurt people, but calling the whole idea a 'white comfort tool' felt like a slap in the face to every minority student who actually uses free speech to fight for their rights. A kid in the back raised his hand and asked if that meant we should ban certain speakers, and the professor just nodded and said 'maybe.' I didn't stay for the rest of the class because I was too mad. Has anyone else run into professors straight up saying free speech is a bad thing on campus?

2 comments

2 Comments

margaretw4110d ago

free speech is just a white comfort tool" what a load of crap honestly. i read an article recently about how students of color at other colleges use free speech to call out racism on campus all the time. like that's literally the whole point of the first amendment, it protects everyone not just white people. the professor nodding and saying maybe we should ban certain speakers is scary too. that's how you end up with only one viewpoint allowed on campus and it won't be the one helping minorities. i get that words can hurt but shutting down ideas isnt the answer either. sounds like you did the right thing walking out, that class was probably gonna be a waste of time anyway.

miller.avery10d ago

honestly if that professor is nodding along to banning certain speakers they have NO idea what they're about to unleash. i went to a school where they tried to block a conservative speaker and it backfired HARD, suddenly every group was fighting over who gets to speak and who doesn't. @margaretw41 you're spot on that free speech protects marginalized people the most. i've seen Black student groups use their free speech to expose racist policies admin was trying to hide. the problem isn't the first amendment, it's people who want to silence opinions they disagree with. walking out was smart cause that class was clearly gonna be a lecture in shutting down debate, not actual learning. if they really cared about protecting students they'd teach critical thinking instead of censorship.