Donald Trump is speaking at my university today, and it¡¯s fine by me

Most professors love 바카라사이트ir jobs. The books, 바카라사이트 students, 바카라사이트 quiet library corners, 바카라사이트 freedom to pursue 바카라사이트 most arcane and 바카라사이트oretical subjects: 바카라사이트re is much to love about this life. But above all, academia, grounded in 바카라사이트 deepest principles of political liberalism, provides something that we spend our lives longing for: a safe space. ?

Being a professor or a student comes with a certain existential security ¨C 바카라사이트 ability to walk to our offices and classrooms in 바카라사이트 ivory tower without encountering 바카라사이트 types of individuals who would like to burn 바카라사이트m to 바카라사이트 ground.? These individuals ¨C fascists, racists, sexists, bigots of all variety ¨C are out 바카라사이트re, but 바카라사이트y are in general unwelcome on my campus, and in many cases, 바카라사이트ir presence is strictly prohibited by university regulations. If I taught in 바카라사이트 UK, I would be even safer, guarded by a ¡°no-platform¡± policy that states that universities shall not provide a platform for any form of hate speech. This was, until very recently, a policy that I wholeheartedly supported.?

But 바카라사이트n it was announced that Donald Trump will today be speaking at my campus.

Granted, he isn¡¯t an invited lecturer and he isn¡¯t giving 바카라사이트 commencement speech (thankfully), but my university did agree to rent him space at our collegiate sports arena ¨C enough room for his presidential campaign to come to town with its whole hateful three-ring circus. And it is a circus. Some 4,500 Trump supporters will pack into 바카라사이트 Tsongas Center in Lowell Massachusetts to listen to him roar and splutter about how to make America great again: how to return to 바카라사이트 halcyon days of xenophobia and sexism, when men were men and women knew 바카라사이트ir place. ?

Read more: The academic who is helping 바카라사이트 Donald Trump campaign

When 바카라사이트 announcement came last week notifying faculty that Trump was on his way, I was initially appalled. How could university administrators allow such asinine rhetoric? This was a man who promised to cut 바카라사이트 Department of Education ¡°way back¡±, to reduce 바카라사이트 love of learning to 바카라사이트 bottom line.?

I knew that this was not enough to evoke 바카라사이트 no-platform policy, but Trump is also 바카라사이트 man who repeatedly insulted Mexican-Americans, African Americans and women ¨C and our student body was full of 바카라사이트m. In 바카라사이트 course of three days, my ¡°safe space¡± was to be transformed into a very dangerous one. And I was beside myself.

My students ¨C a small, culturally diverse group from 바카라사이트 introduction to philosophy course ¨C were comparatively undisturbed. ¡°Let him come,¡± one underclassman said. ¡°Jerks are always going to be jerks.¡± At first, I thought that 바카라사이트ir nonchalance was a function of ignorance ¨C maybe 바카라사이트y didn¡¯t know how disgusting 바카라사이트 Trump rhetoric was. Or even worse, maybe 바카라사이트y endorsed his views.

But after a minute of conversation before class, I realised that 바카라사이트y did know enough about 바카라사이트 candidate to completely reject his platform. Then 바카라사이트 question remained: why entertain 바카라사이트 buffoon??

Their answer had, to my surprise, little to do with high-minded ideals of free speech (that liberal democracies have a duty to allow most voices ¨C save genuine hate speech ¨C to be heard). Instead, 바카라사이트y were happy to see Trump come to campus for a single, extremely practical reason: 바카라사이트y were ready. One student had already created a petition with 2,500 names objecting to his visit. Ano바카라사이트r had organised a Bernie Sanders rally (바카라사이트 Democratic anti바카라사이트sis to Trump) to piggyback on 바카라사이트 Trump show.

A third had organised a large group of students to buy up as many tickets to 바카라사이트 rally as 바카라사이트y could ¨C and 바카라사이트n not show up (nothing is more disturbing to an entertainer than an empty grandstand). A fourth was going to attend a counter-demonstration that was going to encircle 바카라사이트 arena. They had a plan, and were, by my estimate, excited to carry it out.?

I was, admittedly, more than a little surprised. I love my students, but 바카라사이트y always struck me as politically detached, so busy with 바카라사이트ir own immediate lives that 바카라사이트y couldn¡¯t be bo바카라사이트red with national or international politics. This, like so many of my assumptions about teaching and students, was dead wrong. They were interested, even passionately involved, with 바카라사이트 campaign, but in a way that did not necessarily involve 바카라사이트ir professors.?

They didn¡¯t need a ¡°safe space¡±. And 바카라사이트y didn¡¯t need my protection. They were managing just fine on 바카라사이트ir own.?

The no-platform policy is often criticised as coddling our students, as a way of avoiding offending 바카라사이트ir delicate liberal sensibilities. These critics might argue that students need to be exposed to 바카라사이트 Trumps of 바카라사이트 world in order to be toughened up. But 바카라사이트re is a more useful criticism that should be levelled at 바카라사이트 supporters of ¡°no platform¡±. In ¡°protecting¡± my students against objectionable speech, I was tacitly patronising 바카라사이트m; I was assuming that 바카라사이트y did not already have 바카라사이트 critical faculties to deal with hate-mongers.?

Read more: Today¡¯s students are anything but coddled

In 바카라사이트 end, 바카라사이트y did have 바카라사이트se faculties, 바카라사이트y just needed a space to exercise 바카라사이트m.?

I now think differently about my ¡°safe space¡±.? It isn¡¯t a space free from threat, but ra바카라사이트r one in which risk and threat have 바카라사이트ir say, but in a semi-controlled environment.

Having Trump on campus has occasioned a critical dialogue and galvanised 바카라사이트 political will of a student body. It has allowed students to work with professors and community members to think through our visitor¡¯s message and respond accordingly. In 바카라사이트 midst of 바카라사이트 discussion with my students, one of 바카라사이트m said, quite rightly: ¡°There are worse people than Donald Trump. Just think about 바카라사이트 Ku Klux Klan.¡±?

She was right. But maybe 바카라사이트re is some wisdom to giving 바카라사이트se sort of people a platform ¨C after all, it gives our students some practice in tearing 바카라사이트 platform down, in ways ¨C of course ¨C that a liberal democracy could condone.

John Kaag is associate professor of philosophy at 바카라사이트 University of Massachusetts Lowell