Bill Johnson: Universities must lead the way on freedom of speech

Freedom of speech has always demanded courage, and courage is the one virtue universities cannot delegate. When free speech becomes fatal speech — as it did recently with the assassination of Charlie Kirk on a college campus — Americans demand — and deserve — a change. I believe our nation’s university presidents can lead the way.

The facts already announced by authorities are enough to deduce that Kirk’s killer opposed the viewpoints he (civilly and respectfully) espoused in his campus forums. So that the next wave of would-be assassins won’t think they can stop ideas with a bullet, we must all agree to amplify and advance Kirk’s central message: When we stop talking and refuse to listen, violence naturally ensues.

The violence that took Kirk’s life was tragic, the sort of thing that keeps college presidents awake at night. The deadly violence casts a long pall over the campus that will last days, weeks, semesters and even years for those who experienced it onsite or online. But no assassin’s bullet can kill the free exchange of ideas unless we allow it.

Higher education leaders must not permit that violence to have the chilling effect of refusing certain speakers out of fear their words may offend. If we cannot defend the right to speak, we cannot claim the right to teach.

Academia began as an effort to bring about greater understanding through intense but civil dialogue, and those unwilling or unable to participate in that style of learning will not learn much from their time in a university setting.

That’s why, starting now, Youngstown State University will reinforce this freedom of expression ideal with even more emphasis. I call on university leaders across the nation to join us in endorsing what I call the “Youngstown State Commitment.”

This commitment starts with courage and the moral clarity to declare that expressing opinions — even those that some might find unpopular or uncomfortable — isn’t violence. Claiming otherwise is at odds with undeniable truth. For centuries, Western civilizations have acknowledged actual violence is the use of physical force intended to harm, damage or kill someone or something. Mean words, hate speech and bombastic name calling are certainly all examples of low character behavior, but none of them is violence.

Speakers with a wide arc of viewpoints are welcome at YSU. We encourage diverse perspectives. Now more than ever, campus leaders everywhere should follow suit.

Shielding students from ideas under the guise of protection denies them intellectual growth. Turning to cancellation, rage and violence because you disagree with someone shows immaturity of thought. Exposure to genuine, reasoned perspectives, even those that provoke disagreement, is the foundation of critical thinking.

Let’s stop dismissing people we disagree with as controversial or provocateurs. Those are labels that turn up the heat but turn down the light. Kirk was flippantly labeled that way by his ideological adversaries, but he built an incredible network of students who — more than any other young cohort in half a century — engaged with him in public policy and public discourse.

People like Kirk should be celebrated for sharing their ideas in a calm and reasoned manner. That shouldn’t be controversial. Without respect to viewpoint, people who will engage thoughtfully and civilly are welcome here at YSU to speak and answer the toughest questions our students might ask.

Even those university presidents who are unwilling to fully embrace free speech can make a statement in the wake of this despicable political assassination. For example, they could commit to reverse the trend of commencement speakers being disproportionately from the extremes of the political left or the right.

Universities should be at the forefront. In Ohio, our state lawmakers wisely saw the need to insist freedom of thought be a central tenet of campus life. But no university should wait for their legislature to act or the next act of campus violence to institute change. And universities must all strive to build a thoughtful campus community that hears from a wide variety of viewpoints.

America’s universities are not refuges from offense; they are training grounds for truth. Let us be the generation of educators who refused to equate words with weapons and chose instead to defend both speech and civilization.

Bill Johnson is president of Youngstown State University.