Free Speech and Civic Engagement: Promoting Constructive Disagreement on Campus

• In Event: Agreeing to Disagree: How to Promote Civil Discussion on Campus

Abstract

While Americans have always valued their constitutional right to free speech, several surveys in recent years show that younger citizens are less tolerant of free speech than older generations. This trend is particularly evident among college students, a majority of whom support free speech yet do not know that hate speech is constitutionally protected, support disinviting campus speakers with whom they disagree, and self-censor in class. In previous research, we analyzed this current trend through the lens of our respective fields of political science and student affairs to assess whether free speech is a core tenet of civic engagement and diversity initiatives. In doing so, we discovered that better collaboration between political science faculty and student affairs administrators could more effectively promote civic engagement, diversity/inclusion, and free speech on college campuses.

In this paper, we build on that previous research by presenting specific ideas on how to meet the challenge of creating a campus climate that promotes civic engagement as well as free speech and constructive disagreement. We evaluate recent initiatives on many campuses, including our own, that have sought to promote free speech and viewpoint diversity on campus. In addition, we discuss the ways in which political science departments can serve as an essential resource for student affairs administrators in creating campus-wide civic engagement initiatives as well as establishing free speech as an essential academic value.

Authors

• Lori Cox Han, Chapman University

• Jerry Price, Chapman University