Former New York City mayor and current billionaire business magnate (6th wealthiest in the U.S.), Michael Bloomberg, gave ‘coddled millennials’ an unforgiving lecturing during a commencement speech at the University of Michigan on Saturday.
Bloomberg, who dispelled rumors he would run as a third-party presidential candidate, stressed the importance of cooperation, careful listening, and critical thinking to resolve conflicts through reason. He denounced the notion of safe spaces and trigger warnings, citing that they are simply means of running away from real-life issues.
“The fact that some university boards and administrations now bow to pressure and shield students from these ideas through ‘safe spaces,’ ‘code words,’ and ‘trigger warnings’ is, in my view, a terrible mistake,” Bloomberg said to a chorus of cheers. “The whole purpose of college is to learn how to deal with difficult situations – not run away from them.”
“[I]n a macro-sense, one of the most dangerous places on a college campus is a safe space because it creates the false impression that we can insulate ourselves from those who hold different views.”
According to Huffington Post, Michigan students, particularly minorities, disagreed with Bloomberg’s stance.
Says Michigan student Amber George,
“We’re at a university where we should feel safe. The university should advocate for that instead of saying ‘suck it up,’” she said.
“There are people who are afraid to come out and say something on [sexual assault] and a safe space helps people like that,” George said. “To say we should get rid of [safe spaces] undermines people like that.”
“We shouldn’t be afraid to want change,” George added. “There are people throughout history who laid down their lives to fight for change. We as young people shouldn’t be discouraged to change the way things are.”
What are your views on this bros? Are safe places a haven for the oppressed or a cheap mechanism for pussies?
[h/t Huffington Post]