Unsafe Space

"The tales of what's going on at our college campuses would be humorous, but for the dire straits in which academic freedom, and rational thought itself, find themselves. Anybody who bothers to attend a college reunion, or to contribute money to his or her alma mater, or to send a son or daughter to college, should read this book first. It is essential to understand what our colleges are doing to their students, and hence to the nation's future. " (Harvey Silverglate: writer, lawyer and co-author of The Shadow University) "Unsafe Space brings together a formidable and diverse array of critics who surgically dissect the multifarious new ways that universities have been hell-bent on undermining free thought, due process, and the respect for individual autonomy and agency that comprise the foundation of a free society. Anyone concerned about the fate of liberal freedom must read this book, which serves as a canary in the coalmine." (Donald Downs: political science professor, University of Wisconsin-Madison; author, Restoring Free Speech and Liberty on Campus) "Trigger warning: If universities' becoming hostile environments for intellectual freedom doesn't worry you already, it will after you've read the passionate, wide-ranging, and sometimes startling essays in Unsafe Space. Fortunately, when you pick up this book, the solution--more speech, better arguments, and moral courage--is in your hands." (Jonathan Rauch, author of "Kindly Inquisitors" and senior fellow at the Brookings Institute, USA) "Unsafe Space makes a passionate, persuasive case for free speech on campus, touching on many of the censorship battles that others find too hot to handle. A call-to-arms for students and academics who want to turn the tide on campus censorship." (Nadine Strossen - author of "Defending Pornography" and former president of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU))

Students call for speakers to be banned, books to be slapped with trigger warnings and university to be a Safe Space, free of offensive words or upsetting ideas. Our inability to stick up for our founding, liberal values, to insist that the free exchange of ideas should always be a risky business, has eroded free speech from within.The academy is in crisis. Students call for speakers to be banned, books to be slapped with trigger warnings and university to be a Safe Space, free of offensive words or upsetting ideas. But as tempting as it is to write off intolerant students as a generational blip, or a science experiment gone wrong, they’ve been getting their ideas from somewhere. Bringing together leading journalists, academics and agitators from the US and UK, Unsafe Space is a wake-up call. From the war on lad culture to the clampdown on climate sceptics, we need to resist all attempts to curtail free speech on campus. But society also needs to take a long, hard look at itself. Our inability to stick up for our founding, liberal values, to insist that the free exchange of ideas should always be a risky business, has eroded free speech from within.