Weekly Opinion Editorial
MARKETPLACE OF IDEAS
by Steve Fair
The Foundation for Individual Rights and Express (FIRE) is a group founded in 1999 by a college history professor and a civil rights attorney. Their goal is to defend the right of free speech on college campuses. FIRE fights censorship on campuses and attacks on individual fundamental freedoms.
For the sixth year in a row, FIRE surveyed college undergraduates about their perceptions and experiences regarding free speech on their campuses.
This year’s survey includes 68,510 students from 257 colleges across the nation. The results can be read at https://ift.tt/ovySQE0.
The survey showed a record number of students say it’s okay for students to shout down speakers, obstruct event entrances, or use violence to stop opposing views. 166 of the 257 schools received a failing grade on free speech. Another 64 got a 'D' grade. Many of those getting an 'F' were the most prestigious institutions in the country. Three observations:
First, colleges have become institutions of indoctrination. College used to be a place for the free and robust exchange of ideas. Critical thinking was taught. Professors challenged students to defend their positions by encouraging them to form their own opinions. College professors demand conformity, abidance, and compliance. Freedom of thought or disagreeing with the views of the text or teacher is not tolerated. All in the name of tolerance. Many conservative college students just regurgitate what the liberal prof expects to get through the class. Rather than waste their time arguing with someone who requires total agreement with their views, students humor the idiot and move on. That's not higher education, that's brainwashing.
In 1967, the University of Chicago issued the Kalven Report in response to student protests over the war in Vietnam. It argued that universities should remain neutral on political and social issues to foster lively debate. "The university is the home and sponsor of critics; it is not itself the critic," the report concluded.
Second, free speech is not a partisan issue. Free speech cuts both ways. No matter the political ideology, everyone in America is constitutionally guaranteed the right to their opinion- and the right to express it. Liberals and conservatives should be united in protecting the right of everyone to free speech. They should embrace the right of someone to be wrong. Sadly, attacks are free speech come from every corner of political ideology.
Third, a marketplace of ideas is an American ideal. America's founders believed open debate allowed for the testing and refining of ideas, that led to the discovery of truth and better judgment. They did not believe in suppressing opposing viewpoints.
The late Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis wrote, the Founders believed “the greatest menace to freedom is an inert people; that public discussion is a political duty; and that this should be a fundamental principle of the American government.”
The disturbing finding in the poll was that a significant number of current college students believe violence is an acceptable response to someone having a differing view from theirs. Violence is never the answer to disagreement in politics. Dr. Martin Luther King said, "The ultimate weakness of violence is that it is a descending spiral, begetting the very thing it seeks to destroy."
In 2026, Americans better learn to agree to disagree without bloodshed. Otherwise, our way of life will be in jeopardy.
A MARKETPLACE OF IDEAS IS AMERICAN!Click the headline to read this full article, A MARKETPLACE OF IDEAS IS AMERICAN!, at FAIR AND BIASED
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