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University of Chicago Condemns ‘Safe Spaces,’ ‘Trigger Warnings’

Warns students against concept of “trigger warnings.”

While many U.S. universities have focused on creating “safe spaces” and inclusivity for students, the University of Chicago has taken a decidedly different tack for the upcoming school year. In a welcome letter to freshmen from the incoming Class of 2020, Dean of Students John Ellison told students something they wouldn’t hear on most other liberal-arts campuses: “We do not support so called ‘trigger warnings’... and we do not condone the creation of intellectual ‘safe spaces.’” Ellison warned students that while they may experience “discomfort” at times, the school’s “committment to academic freedom means that we do not support so-called ‘trigger warnings,’ we do not cancel invited speakers because their topics might prove controversial, and we do not condone the creation of intellectual ‘safe spaces’ where individuals can retreat from ideas and perspectives at odds with their own.”