As students, we should all enjoy the right to learn what we want free of restriction and without fear of repercussions.
Beyond just learning in classes and experiencing differing ideals from your peers, one of the most important parts of going to university is finding yourself.
However, when the freedom of expression is muzzled by outside interests, and academic freedom is deemed “not absolute” by President Donald Trump, that goes against the entire idea of what college is supposed to be.
Sure, this all depends on who you ask. Some people may say university is all about going to class, going home and doing nothing else. Others might say it’s just about parties, while others say it’s about meeting people, experiencing the social aspect of university and exploring the area surrounding campus.
These are all correct answers to someone. Not every person’s journey here is the same and neither should their experience be. However, if the ability to talk about or learn about certain content is restricted, that gets in the way of what a hotbed of ideas and discussion should stand for.
Academic freedom is commonly discussed among academics and scholars for what they’re able to teach about, even though students are just as important in the eyes of students than just faculty.
For instance, how would it feel to sign up for a class either because it’s required for a major or seems interesting, only for the class to disappear because the subject had been censored?
Thankfully, this hasn’t become a point of concern at Point Park, and it needs to stay that way.
Ideas worth sharing that do not promote hate or any questionable worldview need to be protected. Academic freedom must be practiced every day and kept in the forefront, not as something in the background to fall back on.
And when the Trump administration decides to try and give universities bait on a fishing line in the form of increased federal funding in exchange for a full adherence to his office’s demands, public universities must resist. And private universities, such as Point Park, should not bother bending to its will.
Since we are at a private university, the trampling down on funding and the silencing of contentious topics are problems we don’t have to worry about as much – yet.
What can’t be ignored, though, is problems with the elusive guest speaker policy. Despite weeks passing since The Globe broke the story on Steve Sosbee being barred to speak, we still have not had a specific policy pointed out to us beyond the university having the right to control its spaces as it pleases.
This isn’t unfair. Anyone who attends, teaches at or otherwise exists in an academic space like a college is at the mercy of those who run it. But when rules are shrouded in mystery and never explained properly, it can make people in the campus community suspicious of influences beyond just rules and policies.
After publishing the article on Sosbee, several faculty members anonymously have told The Globe that no such guest speaker policy exists. When the discussion of non-violent ideas is shut down for no reason, that looks an awful lot like censorship, not academic freedom.
Point Park is on a good track with freedoms for students, faculty and staff. The administration must do its part in not going backward.
