Opinion: Local Leftists will and do sacrifice free speech for DEI
The recent Stanford Law controversy, in which a mob of students relentlessly belittled and shouted down invited speaker Judge Kyle Duncan, prompts TXEER Politics and Religion Board user pvbmtnr to consider the common binary thinking separating free speech and Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion—as especially located in Dean Steinbach’s WSJ defense piece.
If I understand, the judge was not scheduled to speak on any of the above-detailed issues and not on diversity, equity and inclusion. Nowhere in all of these writings does anyone, student, assistant dean, judge or other person spell out what describes diversity, equity and inclusion. I looked on the internet and it takes multiple pages of complex explanations from Cornell University's online Human Resources catalog to list multiple courses on the subjects of diversity, equity and inclusion as individual subjects related to earning a Human Resources certificate. Nowhere do I find "diversity" and "free speech" directly used together to describe a course.
Ms. Steinbach, after long explanation of what suposedly happened earlier at Judge Duncan's appearance, wrote that she said "Is the juice worth the squeeze?" She went on to say, "I was referring to the responsibility that comes with freedom of speech: to consider not only the benefit of our words but also the consequences." And later she said, "[W]e would be better served by leaders who ask themselves, 'is... (what we are doing) worth...(the intended consequences and costs)."
Ms. Seinbach's words make no sense to explain what happened when Judge Duncan appeared at Stanford Law. She makes no sense in explaining diversity, equity and inclusion. What she does not say but apparently attempted to say is that whatever topic may be on an agenda, it can end up being disrupted or changed to fit within the ever-amorphous definition of diverse, equity and inclusion. Apparently, this is not an "and" phrase, it is an "or" phase embracing any imaginable or imaged subject matter at any time or any place…
Sorry, diversity, equity and inclusion, however defined, does not pre-empt free speech.
This article originally appeared in the TXEER Politics and Religion Board. Read the whole thing here.
This article is part of an Opp Now series on the Stanford Law free speech scandal—and its aftermath:
Fifth Circuit Judge Kyle Duncan was shouted down last week at a Stanford Law School event, and the disruption was supported by Associate Dean of DEI Tirien Steinbach. David Lat's exceptional Original Jurisdiction has the whole story here.
Tim Rosenberger, Jr., president of Stanford Law’s Federalist Society chapter, breaks down Stanford’s dangerously “comfort”-driven student/faculty culture.
Campus Reform reports that a group of Stanford students are urging the university to dismiss DEI Dean Steinbach.
In the wake of Stanford University’s free speech colloquies, Daniel McCarthy of the NY Post digs into Leftism’s aversion to differences.
Opp Now analyzes Stanford Law’s Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. Spoiler alert: They, and heckler-sympathizer Dean Steinbach, may not be doing all that much.
Tim Rosenberger, Jr. assesses why a few prominent judges have announced they will stop hiring Stanford Law grads.
John Banzhaf is brandishing the potentially career-killing threat of bar complaints against Stanford Law students who heckled federal judge Kyle Duncan.
Reason's Josh Blackman unravels how DEI has stuck its nose into all issues possibly correlated with discrimination (big surprise: it's most of them).
Campus Reform breaks down DEI Dean Steinbach's rampant—and easily accessible—history of opposing law enforcement, criminal justice systems, and, yes, the “patriarchy.”
Stanford's Federalist Society student org president Tim Rosenberger, Jr. discusses how labeling all nonconformists as “far-right” is divisive.
Althouse explains why these university scandals continue happening: As the extremists get louder, the moderates get quieter.
After Stanford's free speech disaster, many are questioning if DEI jobs belong in education, including past USD board runner Zoila Herrera Rollins.
The Free Press’s Bari Weiss unpacks why we should pay attention to universities’ free speech incidents: Young people are powerfully shaping our institutions—and our collective future.
Follow Opportunity Now on Twitter @svopportunity
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