<div dir="ltr"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt" id="gmail-docs-internal-guid-bdcaba64-16b0-02a6-b153-d690b362fff5"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:arial;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-weight:700;font-style:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline">Tuesday Topic: Trigger Warnings and Safe Spaces in Higher Education.</span></p><br><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:arial;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-weight:400;font-style:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline">Trigger Warnings (and Safe Spaces) have been a topic of concern and controversy across college campuses over the last few years. The public dialog surrounding the issue has intensified over a few highly visible cases, notably the release last August of a letter from Jay Ellison, the dean of undergraduate students at the University of Chicago, to the Freshman class of 2020 in which he states that the UofC will not provide students with trigger warnings or safe spaces. The issue has galvanized students against faculty and administrations, and has brought out worries about intellectual freedom and censorship in American education. While reading through arguments on both sides of this issue, I’ve felt confused about how to think about this. It does seem that both sides are managing to talk past each other. I think the best way for me to proceed with this Tuesday Topic is to present a list of articles and resources, both news and opinion, and let individuals come to their own conclusions about the tack that educators should take on this hot button issue. I’m going to use the controversy at the UofC as an initial lense, and then move into some more broad articles that talk about the issue generally, both in the context of education, and as a freedom of speech concern.</span></p><br><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:arial;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-weight:700;font-style:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline">First, </span><a href="https://twitter.com/ChicagoMaroon/status/768561465183862785/photo/1?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw&ref_url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.chicagotribune.com%2Fnews%2Flocal%2Fbreaking%2Fct-university-of-chicago-safe-spaces-letter-met-20160825-story.html" style="text-decoration:none"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:arial;color:rgb(17,85,204);background-color:transparent;font-weight:700;font-style:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:underline;vertical-align:baseline">This is an image of the letter</span></a><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:arial;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-weight:700;font-style:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline"> from the dean at University of Chicago. </span></p><br><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:arial;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-weight:700;font-style:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline">Here is some fairly straight forward reporting on the UoC letter.</span></p><br><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><a href="http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/breaking/ct-university-of-chicago-safe-spaces-letter-met-20160825-story.html" style="text-decoration:none"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:arial;color:rgb(17,85,204);background-color:transparent;font-weight:400;font-style:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:underline;vertical-align:baseline">From the Chicago Tribune</span><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:arial;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-weight:400;font-style:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline"> </span></a></p><br><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2016/08/27/us/university-of-chicago-strikes-back-against-campus-political-correctness.html?rref=collection%2Ftimestopic%2FUniversity%20of%20Chicago&action=click&contentCollection=timestopics&region=stream&module=stream_unit&version=latest&contentPlacement=3&pgtype=collection" style="text-decoration:none"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:arial;color:rgb(17,85,204);background-color:transparent;font-weight:400;font-style:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:underline;vertical-align:baseline">The New York Times</span></a><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:arial;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-weight:400;font-style:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline"> </span></p><br><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><a href="https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2016/08/25/u-chicago-warns-incoming-students-not-expect-safe-spaces-or-trigger-warnings" style="text-decoration:none"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:arial;color:rgb(17,85,204);background-color:transparent;font-weight:400;font-style:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:underline;vertical-align:baseline">Inside Higher Ed</span></a><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:arial;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-weight:400;font-style:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline"> </span></p><br><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:arial;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-weight:700;font-style:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline">A number of pieces that are for trigger warnings and safe spaces on campus regarding the UofC.</span></p><br><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2016/09/11/opinion/trigger-warnings-safe-spaces-and-free-speech-too.html?action=click&pgtype=Homepage&clickSource=story-heading&module=opinion-c-col-right-region&region=opinion-c-col-right-region&WT.nav=opinion-c-col-right-region&_r=0" style="text-decoration:none"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:arial;color:rgb(17,85,204);background-color:transparent;font-weight:400;font-style:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:underline;vertical-align:baseline">This is an opinion piece from a UofC student. </span></a></p><br><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><a href="http://www.slate.com/blogs/xx_factor/2016/08/25/the_university_of_chicago_sent_incoming_freshmen_a_letter_decrying_safe.html" style="text-decoration:none"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:arial;color:rgb(17,85,204);background-color:transparent;font-weight:400;font-style:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:underline;vertical-align:baseline">This opinion piece from Slate’s XXfactor blog</span></a><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:arial;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-weight:400;font-style:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline"> is critical of the dean’s letter.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:24pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><a href="http://www.forbes.com/sites/emilywillingham/2016/08/26/u-chicago-dean-gives-trigger-warning-in-letter-denouncing-trigger-warnings/#444453f55951" style="text-decoration:none"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:arial;color:rgb(17,85,204);background-color:transparent;font-weight:400;font-style:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:underline;vertical-align:baseline">A pro-trigger warning piece from Forbes </span></a><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:arial;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-weight:400;font-style:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline">that argues that the writer of the letter misunderstands the issue.</span></p><br><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:arial;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-weight:700;font-style:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline">And some pieces that are against trigger warnings... </span></p><br><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:4pt"><a href="http://thefederalist.com/2016/08/25/university-of-chicago-sends-the-acceptance-letter-every-college-should/" style="text-decoration:none"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:arial;color:rgb(17,85,204);background-color:transparent;font-weight:400;font-style:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:underline;vertical-align:baseline">Opinion from The Federalist</span></a></p><br><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><a href="http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2015/01/not-a-very-pc-thing-to-say.html" style="text-decoration:none"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:arial;color:rgb(17,85,204);background-color:transparent;font-weight:400;font-style:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:underline;vertical-align:baseline">This piece from the New York Magazine</span></a><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:arial;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-weight:400;font-style:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline"> provides a liberal critique of politically correct speech, and illustrates just how complicated the issue has become on the left. It was written a little earlier than the Chicago letter, but it’s relevant to the issue in a broad sense</span></p><br><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:arial;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-weight:700;font-style:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline">Here are two articles that have slightly different takes on the controversy.</span></p><br><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><a href="http://www.vox.com/2016/8/26/12657684/chicago-safe-spaces-trigger-warnings-letter" style="text-decoration:none"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:arial;color:rgb(17,85,204);background-color:transparent;font-weight:400;font-style:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:underline;vertical-align:baseline">This one, from Vox</span></a><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:arial;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-weight:400;font-style:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline">, argues that the UofC anti-safe spaces letter isn’t about academic freedom, but about power.</span></p><br><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><a href="http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2016/08/26/university-of-chicago-s-p-c-crackdown-is-really-about-keeping-right-wing-donors-happy.html" style="text-decoration:none"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:arial;color:rgb(17,85,204);background-color:transparent;font-weight:400;font-style:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:underline;vertical-align:baseline">And this one, from the Daily Beast</span></a><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:arial;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-weight:400;font-style:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline">, argues that it’s all about keeping right-wing donors happy.</span></p><br><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:arial;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-weight:700;font-style:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline">Finally, here are some articles and a podcast that examine the issue in a broader way, and provide some possible solutions and compromises.</span></p><br><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><a href="http://www.wnyc.org/story/on-the-media-2016-09-02/" style="text-decoration:none"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:arial;color:rgb(17,85,204);background-color:transparent;font-weight:400;font-style:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:underline;vertical-align:baseline">On The Media. You can listen to this radio show</span></a><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:arial;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-weight:400;font-style:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline"> online talk about the trigger warnings and the issue of speech on college campuses generally.</span><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:arial;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-weight:400;font-style:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline"><br class="gmail-kix-line-break"><br class="gmail-kix-line-break"></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><a href="http://www.slate.com/articles/double_x/cover_story/2016/09/what_science_can_tell_us_about_trigger_warnings.html" style="text-decoration:none"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:arial;color:rgb(17,85,204);background-color:transparent;font-weight:400;font-style:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:underline;vertical-align:baseline">This long form article on Slate</span></a><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:arial;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-weight:400;font-style:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline"> talks about trigger warnings in light of two kinds of therapy for treating Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. </span></p><br><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:arial;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-weight:400;font-style:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline">...And finally, </span><a href="http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2016/09/colleges-are-defining-microaggressions-really-broadly.html" style="text-decoration:none"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:arial;color:rgb(17,85,204);background-color:transparent;font-weight:400;font-style:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:underline;vertical-align:baseline">an article</span></a><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:arial;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-weight:400;font-style:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline"> with some links on the related topic of microaggressions.</span></p><br><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:arial;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-weight:400;font-style:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline">I hope that the above articles will provide some context and help you think about this complex issue. I can tell you that I’m still personally having difficulty determining exactly what I think is the best way for Universities to handle trigger warnings and safe spaces, but I do get a sense that if both sides can listen to each other’s concerns, compromise may be possible.</span></p><br><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:arial;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-weight:400;font-style:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline">Brandon Wilkinson</span></p><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:arial;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-weight:400;font-style:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline">Member, Intellectual Freedom Committee, Oregon Library Association.</span></div>