Week 7

Caitlyn Minas
May 13, 2017
A03

In the beginning of the quarter, Professor Valverde really set the tone for this class by stating that this classroom is not a safe space because the world is not made for safe spaces.  The corner of the room occupied by fellow Fil-Am community members were suddenly alert, and likely offended, that she is challenging the idea of what it means to have academic freedom and where we can express that freedom without hesitation.

I never heard of the concept of a safe space until freshman year of college.  Like the article “How Trigger Warnings Are Hurting Mental Health on Campus," I understand where the idea of safe spaces and trigger warnings come from.  As a millennial, I grew up with protective parents who would not allow me to walk or ride my scooter to the park down the street, even with a friend, without an adult.  Even last year’s PCN began with a trigger warning regarding upcoming scenes with corporal punishment, a suicide attempt, and verbal insults.  However, as the article argues, what intends to be just a cushioning for resurfacing emotions presents a harsh reality aside from what our mind creates.  We’re not in the military, but we are at war every day.  How can we positively change the world and still hide from what makes us uncomfortable?  We are furthering our parents’ fears instead of lessening them.

This article made me hyperaware of incidents where people are quick to voice concerns for marginalized or oppressed groups without considering context.  I found the example about the hump day celebration and its (non)relation to Middle Eastern people pretty funny, actually, because the event was planned to embrace the meaning of “hump day,” i.e. the halfway point to the weekend, yet arguing that bringing a camel to an American university campus appropriates an image of a local crossing the desert via an animal that is adapted to a hot desert climate.  Who even said it was okay for the people who protested the event to speak for the camel, the host organization, or Middle Eastern people?  If the protestors did not take action based on how the potential event offended them only, then that only establishes who is right and wrong rather than forming an opinion and possible solution based on facts and evidence.

Question: What would you say to those students who advocate for safe spaces and are "hypersensitive" to social issues on campus?

Coyne, J. (14 May 2015). My New Republic piece on trigger warnings. Why Evolution is True. Retrieved from 

          https://whyevolutionistrue.wordpress.com/2015/05/14/my-new-republic-piece-on-trigger-warnings/