The shift I saw at UVA after the 2017 rally

Back in fall 2017 I was a junior at UVA. Before the Unite the Right rally, you could have pretty heated debates about statues or speakers and people would just argue and move on. After that weekend, the whole vibe changed. Now even mentioning certain topics in class gets you shut down fast or people just stay quiet. Has anyone else seen a similar shift at their school after a big event?

2 comments

2 Comments

grant.jason4d ago

Did your professors actually shut people down or was it other students?

lisa9764d ago

Honestly, isn't that just a bigger pattern of people silencing others in real life too? I've noticed that at work or even with friends, someone always tries to cut off a conversation once it gets uncomfortable. It's like we all learn to shut down tough topics before they even start, not just in classrooms.