Is The Protection Of Minorities Worth The Suppression Of Speech? The Effects Of Political Correctness On American Universities And College Campuses

This honors thesis is a brief study of the highly politicized debate over political correctness (PC). The study explores, through political and historical lenses, PC’s impact on college and university campuses. Political correctness is argued to be a double-edged sword driven by the competing interests of equal rights and free speech for predominance in institutions of higher education. The intellectual foundations of political correctness are grounded in the theories of postmodernism, deconstruction, and the belief that language is power. Campus speech codes, multicultural studies, and trigger warnings on colleges and universities are tangible byproducts of the PC debate. This thesis affirms the importance of striking a balance between equality and freedom of speech on college and university campuses. Recommendations for how to achieve that balance are provided. The author advocates the need for additional research into the PC movement that goes beyond the current politicized debate.