Ha’aretz has released a preliminary article on an upcoming report from Columbia University’s anti-Semitism task force. The findings include apparently real instances of faculty discrimination against students based on their Jewish backgrounds, and incentivizing of campus activism for academic points. Another outcome of this report will be mandatory student and faculty training on anti-Semitism in order to know what Jews might find offensive.
I’m sorry, but this is a terrible idea. Yes, universities are there to educate, but this is going to have the opposite effect. One reason people gravitate toward radical beliefs is that social discouragement of them creates a taboo that may inadvertently cause a person to become more attracted to the prohibited act or behavior. One psychological study explored this in the context of attraction to violent video games. Does anyone not remember as a teenager sneaking away a beer, whiskey bottle, or pack of cigarettes without telling his/her parents? I would wager the majority of the people reading are nodding their heads. This doesn’t mean that the banned activity should be ignored or encouraged, just that the restriction of it often leads to a desire to transgress.
So what is the answer? Unfortunately a lot of the damage already has been done, and I believe many prospective students at Columbia and other universities will be choosing different schools. In order to reform as an institution, the university could simply make it a part of their code of conduct that faculty refrain from political activity when interacting with students. Student political clubs will have to agree to not target student members of rival groups in an intimidating way. We don’t need censorship and sensitivity training to restore a civil environment conducive to learning, just good old common sense.
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JAFFA Short: Mandatory anti-Semitism training? Another terrible idea.
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Ha’aretz has released a preliminary article on an upcoming report from Columbia University’s anti-Semitism task force. The findings include apparently real instances of faculty discrimination against students based on their Jewish backgrounds, and incentivizing of campus activism for academic points. Another outcome of this report will be mandatory student and faculty training on anti-Semitism in order to know what Jews might find offensive.
I’m sorry, but this is a terrible idea. Yes, universities are there to educate, but this is going to have the opposite effect. One reason people gravitate toward radical beliefs is that social discouragement of them creates a taboo that may inadvertently cause a person to become more attracted to the prohibited act or behavior. One psychological study explored this in the context of attraction to violent video games. Does anyone not remember as a teenager sneaking away a beer, whiskey bottle, or pack of cigarettes without telling his/her parents? I would wager the majority of the people reading are nodding their heads. This doesn’t mean that the banned activity should be ignored or encouraged, just that the restriction of it often leads to a desire to transgress.
So what is the answer? Unfortunately a lot of the damage already has been done, and I believe many prospective students at Columbia and other universities will be choosing different schools. In order to reform as an institution, the university could simply make it a part of their code of conduct that faculty refrain from political activity when interacting with students. Student political clubs will have to agree to not target student members of rival groups in an intimidating way. We don’t need censorship and sensitivity training to restore a civil environment conducive to learning, just good old common sense.
Thanks for reading JAFFAWire! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.
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