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The Decline of Dialogue in American Universities
A protest, a heckle, or even an act of violence is merely a reaction to symptoms of a problem. It does not address the root cause of our inner conflict. Universities are meant to cultivate dialogue, critical thinking, and intellectual challenge to resolve these problems — not encourage mob-like reactions.
This morning I read an article about “deplatforming” on U.S. college campuses. Over the past two years, there’s been a surge in university students and administrators working together — sometimes directly, sometimes passively — to shut down speakers with controversial viewpoints.
The trend is disturbing. Speakers often with conservative or politically charged opinions on topics like abortion, transgender rights, or the Israel-Palestine conflict, are being heckled, shouted down, or even forced to barricade themselves in rooms while student protesters aggressively disrupt their events.
And this isn’t happening in obscure institutions — these are prestigious universities: Stanford, Syracuse, San José State, the University of Washington, and so on. Higher education is meant to be a space for logic, critical thinking, and open debate. Instead, intolerance, rage, and ignorance seem to be taking over.
When Discussion Turns to Outrage
