TO THE EDITOR:
I refused to read the summer reading book. I refused to read it because I decided it was against my personal beliefs and didn’t want to be “indoctrinated” with opposing thought. Looking back, that is one of my highlight regrets from Carolina. Not that I didn’t read the book but that I started college trying to shield myself from opinions I didn’t agree with.
We live in a world of trigger warnings and outright refusals to even listen to opinions that oppose our own, and that’s not what college is about.
Hearing about professors being pressured into including warnings on their syllabuses and alternative readings to students who do not want to participate in uncomfortable discussions is disheartening because it takes away the value of the education Carolina is offering. You’re not just going to college to learn about Shakespeare or accounting. You’re here to learn about yourself and how you engage with the world. Part of that is learning how you handle uncomfortable situations.
Life won’t give you trigger warnings and neither should your professors. You will see things that make you uncomfortable. You will meet people who don’t agree with you. You will be reminded of bad things that happened to you.
Trust yourself. Give yourself an opportunity to grow. Give yourself the opportunity to challenge how strong you really are. Do not hide behind your personal beliefs, self-inflicted ignorance and fear. Take advantage of everything at Carolina. You will regret it if you don’t.
Samantha Ryan
Class of ’11
