Over the course of history, there have always been debates over what constitutes as hate speech. Due to the extremely subjective nature of this problem, it has been constantly debated. Articles, such as “Hate Speech: The History of an American Controversy,” and “Hate Speech and Free Speech” have been written discussing both the legal debates about this topic in addition to the ethics and morals behind it. In recent years, a lot of attention has been focussed on Academic freedom, specifically freedom of discussion in a classroom setting. There is a lot of debate on what is, and what isn’t appropriate in a classroom setting, however there really is no objective answer. Rules are subject to the president of the University, and what is and isn’t appropriate has been constantly disputed. In this essay, I first discuss the role hate speech plays on college campuses in modern day. I then discuss what is and isn’t appropriate on college campuses while discussing challenges with taking a stance on this particular issue.
The societal importance of going to college has never been greater than it is today. With about two in every three kids going to college in the United States, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, an increased sensitivity to matters including racism, sexual harassment, and free speech have been established. After much skepticism about whether disciplinary measures taken by colleges, campus hate speech codes grew in popularity. Attempts by Universities to punish students have often resulted in debates surrounding the first amendment right of free speech granted to all american citizens. The ability of private universities to regulate speech, the issue of violating the first amendment has caused many public universities to repeal policies regarding hate speech, causing issues on campuses. With no concrete way to denote free speech from hate, this problem is at its climax.
In order to determine what should constitute as hate speech, it is important to look to how the Supreme Court has handled cases centered around hate speech vs free speech. This issue, in part, dates back to times of slavery when blacks were treated as inferior to whites. As amendments were made, and the country began to treat people as equal, the Supreme Court handled many cases surrounding these issues. In 1964, a case by the name of New York Times v Sullivan, the court created a “malice standard”, stating there is a distinction between malice and the first amendment.
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This new breakthrough began the everlasting controversy over what constitutes as hate speech. To begin, there should be a clear distinction between abuse and speech. The cruel and violent treatment of a fellow human with malicious intent should not be permissible on any college campus. This is seen in many forms: verbal abuse, sexual abuse, and physical abuse just to name a few. A fine line should be drawn between issues regarding abuse and matters that fall more in the gray area of “hate speech.” Although the media does determine some issues of abuse as controversial, abuse is not appropriate on a college campus. A classroom is filled with different opinions, perspectives, and dynamics.
This plethora of diversity that lie in the classrooms in which students have the luxury of being taught in should be a safe place to share opinions and learn from others. However, the schism caused by the diverse population of students has resulted in an influx of controversial statements made in a classroom setting. Similar to the basis of the Scopes Monkey Trial, which took place in 1925 banning the teaching of evolution in public schools, colleges should advise its professors of certain sensitive topics that should not be mentioned in class. However, there is a difference between easing away from sensitive topics and restricting free speech. As Samuel Walker stated in his article “Hate Speech: The History of American Controversy,” restricting free speech could result in a diminution of the ability of the politically powerless to make their voices heard. The goal to restrict the discussion of sensitive topics whilst not stripping students of their right to free speech is a balance that has not, is not, and might never be perfected. Furthermore, an issue lies within what can and can not be asked of teachers.
Teaching a class, in theory, seems rather straightforward. But, in recent years especially, many teachers have been criticized and even accused of using hate speech. For example, at Princeton University in February of 2018, a professor was forced to cancel a class he taught on cultural freedoms and hate speech. Some students walked out of the class when the professor used a racial slur for teaching purposes. While using a racial slur can be sensitive to some students, a class engineered around hate speech should give the professor leeway to speak truth, and if the truth means using a racial slur, that is acceptable in a class titled “cultural freedoms and hate speech.” The fact of the matter is that it is not appropriate for students to walk out of a class that is based on a topic with a lot of controversy. Students should take classes that interest them, so, if a student is sensitive to certain language, they should not take the class.
When taking a more broad look at issues revolving around hate speech vs free speech in our country, there have been movements and matters taken to help combat hate and protect certain groups of people. The issue of hate speech on campuses is just a small part of the much greater issue in the United States, and the world. Across the United States, groups such as the Ku Klux Klan have grown significantly. These groups utilize their rights to the First Amendment which states that hate speech is “constitutionally protected unless the circumstances of the case indicate that the speaker intended to threaten violence or provoke an immediate act of violence.” This makes it very hard to shut down groups such as the KKK or Southern Poverty hate group as they know their rights and how to stay protected by the first amendment while always maximizing the damage they inflict on others. In opposition to these hate groups, groups such as the Anti-Defamation league and Partners Against Hate have helped to provide support to people affected by these hate groups. This issue is much larger than just college, and it is important students are educated on these larger issues, not just the ones that occur on college campuses.
Hate speech has been an everlasting controversy in the United States that has sparked a lot of attention on college campuses. Any form of abuse or language used to purposely degrade someone’s religion, race, or life is inappropriate in a college setting and are all forms of hate speech. The main issue with hate speech revolves around what constitutes hate speech vs free speech, however, distinctions have been made by both the government and universities determining what crosses the line. Despite these distinctions, many cases handled by universities fall in a gray area, and are very hard to handle. This gray area has given opportunities to the media to publish articles about hate speech on campuses expressing the controversy and the role it plays in the lives of students and faculty. President’s of Colleges and Universities are left in a very tough place, as most matters of hate speech differ from one another soon decisions are often disputed and very controversial. Due to the first amendment protecting citizens in the United States from oppression, the controversy over hate speech will always be controversial as there will always be a debate whether an arrest for hate speech is a violation of one’s freedom of speech.
