yego.me
💡 Stop wasting time. Read Youtube instead of watch. Download Chrome Extension

2017/04/24: Banned lecture at Linfield College: Ethics and Free Speech


3m read
·Nov 7, 2024

Processing might take a few minutes. Refresh later.

So, back in February, I received the following letter from a student at Linfield College. And, according to its website, "With campuses in McMinnville, Portland, and a prestigious online program, Linfield College is a premier choice in the Pacific Northwest for a high quality, traditional liberal arts education. Want to learn more? Contact us for details about our degree and certificate program offerings."

A student there, who I won't name, sent me the following letter:

"Dear Dr. Peterson, I'm an undergraduate student at Linfield College at McMinnville, Oregon. The International Students for Liberty Conference recently granted me a small sum to organize pro-liberty events on campus, with an emphasis on the importance of free speech. I'm writing to ask you if you're accepting speaking invitations at this time, and, if you're scheduled sometime between now and May, would allow it to help narrow down my options. I would like to offer you 1500 dollars and an invitation to speak here this spring semester. Your travel and accommodation costs will also be covered.

I perceive Linfield as an institution at an ideological crossroads. I feel it is my responsibility to pick the most effective voice possible for helping Linfield chart a course that will ensure its future as a place of reason and academic integrity. After listening to many of your lectures and interviews, I believe your message is ideal for our campus. Honest and productive argumentation is one of your specialties. Linfield would greatly benefit from being introduced to your ideas on the subject. We are a small college of roughly 2000 students, situated in quiet wine country. Your work continues to have a deep impact on my personal and intellectual growth. I'd be honored to hear from you. Thank you for your time and consideration."

So, after considering it for a while, I agreed to come speak at Linfield College. On March 18th, I received a note from an inviting student, who said:

"Good morning Dr. Peterson, I would be overjoyed to confirm a date."

So we went about doing that. On April 7th, he replied to me again to update me. He said:

"The talk will be held in ICE auditorium, in Melrose Hall, April 24th, beginning at 7 pm. I'm referring to the event simply as 'A Talk with Jordan Peterson' because his speaking style allows for a lot of fluidity in topic. However, the core theme to the event is the importance of Freedom of speech, especially in higher education."

Some of the administration/student government have begun to fret about the potential for people to feel 'offended and oppressed' by Peterson's talk. It's more pushback than I'd expected at Linfield, but I don't think it's a cause for concern. I find it hard to keep their worries at bay. And there's a very supportive group of students and community members who have my back. Free speech will win.

On April 17th, the following article appeared in the student newspaper by Kaelia Neal, Editor in Chief. It's called "Hate Symbol on Ball Riles Campus."

The Linfield Young Americans for Liberty group's free speech ball outside Walker's Hall on April 12th received attention from students and faculty when a student drew Pepe the Frog, which has recently been appropriated by white supremacist groups. Linfield College posted a picture of the ball on its Instagram account, but it was later removed because of the frog's association with alt-right groups.

"As soon as it was pointed out that the photo included the image, the Instagram post was removed," President Thomas Hellie said.

The free speech ball event, the first event in the Speak Freely series at Linfield, encouraged students to express themselves by writing and drawing on the ball to promote free speech. Pepe the Frog is a popular Internet meme that has often appeared in humorous ways. The Anti-Defamation League has listed Pepe the Frog on its hate symbols database.

"I only heard about it second hand, and I understand that it is a place for free speech, but in all reality it was certainly done in very poor taste," junior John Christianson said.

According to its website, the YAL's mission...

More Articles

View All
Worked example: exponential solution to differential equation | AP Calculus AB | Khan Academy
So we’ve got the differential equation: the derivative of y with respect to x is equal to 3 times y, and we want to find the particular solution that gives us y being equal to 2 when x is equal to 1. So I encourage you to pause this video and see if you …
Last Wild Places: Iberá | National Geographic
(Inspirational music) (Thunder rolls) [Sebastián] Iberá was a place that was degraded by humans. And it’s a place that is being recovered by humans. It’s an incredible example of what we can achieve if we have the decision of restoring an ecosystem on a …
Bank Failures Are Coming (Do This ASAP)
What’s up you guys? It’s Graham here, and it looks like it’s happening again. Not even a year after the failure of Silicon Valley, Signature, and First Republic Bank, another storm seems to be brewing. And no, I’m not talking about the insane amount of ra…
Why I'm Selling
What’s up guys, it’s Graham here. So, as most of you know, since I’ve started the channel and really for the last 10 years, I’ve dedicated the majority of my efforts and my money towards investing in real estate, with a lot of it documented here in the ch…
Explorer Albert Lin explores a cave burial site filled with ancient carvings
So little is known about the Picts. Searching for their lost kingdom means I must follow every lead, and there’s something on the walls of this cave that’s drawing me in. I’m going to start the scan. Okay, yeah, my handheld Light Art technology allows me…
To everyone wondering “When the Real Estate market will crash??” - my prediction
So basically you’re getting these people with big down payments who are making a lot of money, who can afford these houses, who are buying; this is hardly a bubble, and this is very sustainable long term because none of these people are ever gonna let the…