Safe Spaces, Safer Spaces And Positive Spaces

The purpose of my research is to explore and offer analysis of the controversy over the use of trigger warnings and safe spaces on college campuses, in order to understand when, where, and most importantly, regarding what subjects their use is appropriate.

Through the 1940s-50s, gay bars were a crucial time for the gay community. Gay bars were not just a place for gays and lesbians to go to but it also was a “safe haven” for them because they were be able to be comfortable in their own skin. Homosexual men had more “freedom” to express themselves in public (such as parks, and bars) than homosexual women. The only places that homosexual women could express themselves were at lesbian bars. Lesbian bars enabled them to form their identity, including black lesbians. According to Elizabeth Kennedy and Madeline Davis, in their article “I Could Hardly Wait to Get Back to that Bar,” they define a lesbian bar as “a place where patrons felt relatively safe,” (33). This quote demonstrates the fact that

In the article “Trigger Warnings, Safe Spaces and Free Speech, too” published in the New York Times by Sophie Downes, Downes argues in response to a letter sent out by the dean of the University of Chicago. The letter states that safe spaces and trigger warnings were an issue deterring students from having free speech and therefore would not be supported on the Chicago campus anymore. Downes argues that the letter was just a poor attempt to advert attention away from the real issues on the campus—ones that the dean will not meet with student council about and will not talk about at all. Sophie Downes argues that safe spaces and trigger warnings actually encourage free space and enhance support and community—two values that the dean said were deterred by the existence of them.

As a class, we mainly fell into the category of those who would not tell a professor if they had any concerns regarding a class. The standard here with the usage of trigger warnings is how do we as a society know what actually will require a trigger warning. If no one has a standard, then the policy would be mocked for being too lackadaisical. I see trigger warnings being necessary in some situations where I would want to know if something graphic is going to be shown to me. We came across two definitions of safe spaces in the class: 1) an actual physical safe space and 2) an ideological safe space. The concern with the physical safe space is that it seems more reductive or childish, which interestingly enough is how the Baby Boomers assess our generation.

A troubling issue for schools now is how to deal with the issue of homosexuality. The struggle for gay rights often causes heated opposition, particularly on moral grounds from members of religious groups. (Essex, 2005, p. 43) Schools have an obligation to maintain a peaceful environment free of significant disruption, while supporting students' rights of free speech. Schools should ". . . create an environment that is characterized by respect for individual views and divergent forms of expression within reasonable limits. The challenge seems to involve achieving a reasonable balance between an orderly educational environment and respect for the free speech rights of students. Precisely, where do they draw the line?" (Essex, 2005, p. 44)

Conversations in the media and on college campuses regarding trigger warnings, safe spaces, and microaggressions have been impassioned, to say the least. Many have found such requests to be reasonable, because students, in essence, are seeking a respectful atmosphere in which vulnerabilities are respected and insults are not tolerated. Critics have argued that designating some spaces as “safe” implies that others are “unsafe,” and it follows, then, that these “unsafe” spaces should be made “safer.” To what end? Even those who express support wonder: where to draw the line? What topics warrant trigger warnings? Who decides what constitutes a microaggression? That certain subjects demand delicate treatment in the classroom is hardly

Does safe spaces at universities make for a better experience for minorities like blacks, LGBTQ, or anyone that’s not heterosexual white males. Safe spaces are places where anyone can relax and freely express themselves without fear of being made to feel uncomfortable, unwelcome, or unsafe. University of Chicago in the class 2020 received a letter explicitly stating that they support academic freedom which in terms that they do not support “trigger warnings,” and even went as far to say that they don't condone the creation of “intellectual safe spaces.” In response to this letter sent out to the class of 2020 regarding safe spaces Cameron Okeke wrote the article “I’m a black UChicago graduate. Safe spaces got me through college,” arguing that

Throughout Bait, Diego makes some choices. Some of the choices are to be desired and some are the complete opposite. Whether it was a good or a bad choice, lots of his decisions have an effect on the setting, whether it makes Diego go somewhere else or it can sometimes change the mood of the setting that the book is in. The setting in the book never lasts very long whether it is home, juvie, court, a probation appointment, the beach, or school. You can never count out a change of setting in Bait by Alex Sanchez.

On today's college campuses, there has been more offended people than ever before. Rioting for more rules and restrictions because they are offended has brought up a solution that does more harm than good. Accepting safe spaces has been a heated debate on college campuses. I personally think that safe space would only spoil kids and make us more fragile. If safe space rules are set up, that would mean we no longer tolerate speeches in class that can be somewhat sensitive or uncomfortable for some students to handle. I admit that the intention is good-natured, but I think this would be more harmful than beneficial. Todays college behavior is irrational and unwarranted. Todays college behavior goes against the first amendment,

In some schools safe spaces are believed to be pointless and unnecessary, the schools have labeled them as “coddling” the students and that it does not prepare them from what is ahead in the real world. They want the students to be strong and learn to speak up when something offends or upsets them; they believe that the educators and other staff of the schools should not and will not pave the way for students as they proceed to the real world; which is seen as tough and people can and will offend you easily. Students have fought to have this point seen differently, in which I agree safe spaces are necessary; they are welcoming and make others feel safe in a situation that has caused them some sort of trauma either mentally or physically or has made them feel uncomfortable in some sort of way. Many people value the safe spaces as it helps them connect with others the same as them whether

Recently there was a amicus and it stated "Safe Spaces for Women has nothing against transgendered community it's

In her statement “Today in most overtly gay spaces there is little to no visible gender queerness or any indication that such variance is tolerated,” Petra Doan is saying that while there are gay spaces that are created for the queer community, these areas often do not contain a high number of gay people, and they are in fact mostly inhabited by heterosexuals. The gendering of these spaces is meant to increase the general acceptance of gay people and to provide a haven for them, but Doan believes these spaces are still largely dominated by heterosexuals.

What does it mean when we make spaces for everybody but cis men? Let’s talk about gender separatism. Whether or not we use longer descriptions aimed at framing the message in positive terms: “This is a space for cis women and transgender people” or “All lesbians, transpeople, bi- and heterosexual women are welcome” the intent is to create spaces where everybody but cis men can feel welcome. There was a time when I loved this idea and these spaces. Cis men take up way too much space in the world. It’s a damn relief to know I’m going to a space where I will not have to deal with that particular type of bullshit. I’d hate to see this type of separatism disappear altogether. Still, this approach certainly doesn’t preclude other varieties of bullshit – and that’s the stuff I’d like to interrogate. Increasingly, I have come to view ‘no cis men’ separatism as the following: spaces for anyone assigned female at birth and extremely self-assured and/or well-(queer)networked trans feminine people. Who actually comes to spaces with this type of separatist policy? Who is technically included and not showing up? There are many queer communities in Copenhagen. I’m talking about the one that populates Queer Festival and Queer Sauna… *** This one is extremely dominated by cis women and trans-masculine people. All transgender people are welcome in theory but the only a handful of brave trans women actually show up in these spaces with any regularity. AFAB playground As a

Without a doubt we have are on the cusp of a new age, the age of the politically correct. Today social crusaders, form groups to protect the rights of everything under the sun. They affect everyday life by changing and shaping policy in ways never seen before. Within the last couple years we have seen major shifts in society's values. In California, AB 1266 also known as the "bathroom bill" passed resulting in the following; “A pupil shall be permitted to participate in sex-segregated school programs, activities, and facilities, including athletic teams and competitions, consistent with his or her gender identity, irrespective of the gender listed on the pupil’s records.” This bill and others like it show the power of the PC movement. While

In a recent poll a whopping 36 percent of students felt that safe spaces were necessary on college campuses according to LendEDU, a student loan organization. Safes spaces provide an outlet for many who may take offense to material that negatively impacts a student’s emotions. Some students who have had traumas in their life take security in safe spaces due to the guarantee of not being in harm’s way of the lessons they may find offensive. In a world that is not censored from sensitive material in every location it is apprehensive to put trust into a specific location for security. Although many would agree safe spaces provide an outlet of security for those who have experienced traumas in their life, an alternative compromise should be in place to allow students to explore the world from different perspectives, learn to handle the tribulation of opposition, and to prepare students to overcome adversity outside of the classroom. Safe spaces on college campuses are defined as a place or environment in which a person or category of people can feel confident that they will not be exposed to discrimination, criticism, harassment, or any other emotional or physical harm therefor, it is wise to find comfort in the ideological sense of security a student would likely find in a safe space.