Harvard Alum Lipson on Restoring Free Speech at Our Universities
RealClear Politics 09.30.22
Charles Lipson (AM ‘74 PHD ‘76) writes a sobering piece on free speech at universities.
“Students don’t need reminding how intolerant their campuses are. They already know. If they hold unpopular opinions, they keep their heads down. If they hold dominant views, they are all too eager to shame those who differ rather than debate them. Faculty and administrators are among the worst bullies, and they hold real power over students. Whole departments display this intolerance.”
To think Harvard is different is to think again. “This poisonous atmosphere is not confined to a few departments or a few universities. It is pervasive.” When it comes to free speech rankings, “What about the Ivies and Stanford? None was rated ‘above average’ on free speech and only two, Dartmouth and Stanford, achieved an ‘average’ rating. From there, it’s all downhill. Cornell (#154), Princeton (#169) and Harvard (#170) were ranked ‘below average.’ Yale, Penn, and Columbia scrape the bottom of the barrel.”
Related:
Overseer Candidates’ Harvard Priorities [Freedom of Expression Notably Absent] (2/1/23)
