Safe spaces used to inhibit free speech on campuses, British inquiry finds

A parliamentary committee has expressed serious concerns about barriers to  in universities, warning that safe-space policies on campuses are “problematic” and often lead to the marginalisation of minority groups’ views.

The joint committee on human rights (JCHR), chaired by Harriet Harman [a Leftist], said its inquiry had not uncovered wholesale censorship of debate on university campuses as some media reporting had suggested, but warned there were nevertheless factors at work that actively limited free speech in universities.

While some of these involved attempts by students to prevent debate of contested issues, the report also blamed university bureaucracy imposed on those organising events and restrictive guidance to student unions regarding freedom of speech on campuses.

The committee’s report, published on Tuesday, said that although the problem was not pervasive, intolerant attitudes – often incorrectly using the banner of no-platforming and safe space policies – were nevertheless interfering with free speech on campus.

It said safe-space policies, originally intended to ensure that minority or vulnerable groups felt secure, were being used by some people to seek to prevent the free speech of others whose views they disagreed with.

 SOURCE