Every good idea is eventually perverted into something that is at best not-so-good, and at worst, devastating. The most recent insult I've seen slung around has been, "Go cry in your safe space," or "Special snowflake safe space." But what is a "safe space"? Is it what people on Tumblr would have you believe? Is it what colleges would have you believe? What did it start as? What is it for? Like all words in the English language, the words "safe space" and "trigger warnings" have their own origins and connotations. Where did "safe space" begin?
It all started in the 60's and the 70's with the women's liberation movement and the gay rights movement. You see, back then, it was actually dangerous for gay men and women to be out in the open because it was literally illegal. You could be thrown in jail, beat or worse. As for the women's rights movement, well, that was always a danger. Two of the main issues that the Women's Liberation movement faced was the domestic violence issue and rape. Through the years, safe space came to mean a space for people who fostered other political goals. It wasn't a place to shield yourself, it was a place to engage, debate, and drive policy.
Trigger warnings also started in a compassionate place. Trigger warnings were originally meant for people with PTSD, which develops from some sort of trauma (sexual trauma, assault, veterans, gun violence, ect). They're necessary. There's no need for a trauma survivor to relive their trauma by seeing something on a screen or reading something that reminds them of their trauma. You wouldn't call a military veteran a "special snowflake" for needing a warning about fireworks because people with legitimate trauma aren't begging for attention. We all agree that PTSD is an illness that needs to be helped and treated.
I'd like to be open and state here that I do lean to the left politically. I'm a big women's liberation activist, but I can see why people are upset. There are viewpoints that I, as a women's activist, hold that are in a bit of conflict with other communities that I consider myself a part of, to the point where I actually feel afraid of expressing my views. I don't mean to harm anyone, I just want a conversation about it. I can only imagine how it would feel to be someone with an even more deviated viewpoint. But what we forget is that most people want to understand, but boxing yourself off and yelling at people will only increase animosity.
So where did we go wrong? When did we start hating these places? Lately, the media surrounding safe spaces and trigger warnings, on either side, don't seem anything like their origins.
One one side, you have Tumblr, which is perhaps the most famous for it's radicalized pledge to fight social injustice. But when you have fifteen-year-olds reading whatever comes up on their dashboards and taking it as gospel, things tend to go awry. I've been away from Tumblr for a while, but before I left (and when I occasionally glance at it), I noticed some trigger warnings that seemed off. I saw everything from words like Menstruation (a bodily function) to ice (the solid form of water) to discourse (political conversations). While I can see that these things would be something that someone doesn't want to see, these things don't necessarily have anything to do with the intended purpose of trigger warnings. It's not difficult to stay away from these topics. But that's just online right?
Well, maybe not. The news media frames real life usage of the terms "trigger warning" and "safe space" as if people are going out in masses and demanding that everything be as labelled as it is on Tumblr. That's just not true. Yet whenever I see a conservative news pundit disagree with someone (and it doesn't even have to be a pundit, it could be a random person on Facebook) "safe-space" liberal is the first insult that I see. In fact, if it's not thrown out, I'm shocked. It loses it's meaning.
Both sides of the media have corrupted terms that once had meaning, and now they really don't have any meaning at all. If someone calls me a "safe-space" snowflake, I don't really care. I know that I'm not one, and I know that the phrase has little to no meaning. And I do agree, sometimes kids are lost to their own bubble, but that's every kid from every political affiliation from every walk of life. It's called being young.
A safe space is not meant to be a place where everyone must agree in a unified matter. A safe space is a place where healthy discourse can be had in order to reach a unified goal. I guess you could say that College Republicans and College Democrats are safe spaces, because discourse is still had, but no one is in animosity towards each other and everyone in their respective groups is trying to meet a common goal. That's what a safe space should be. It should be a place for understanding, calm discussion and freedom from fear of persecution. "Safe" does not mean uniform, it does not mean free from criticism, it just means that you can openly discuss your views and opinions in a safe and friendly manner.
A Church is a safe space for Christians, an NRA meeting is a safe space for gun enthusiasts, a PETA meeting is a safe space for animal rights activists, a pride parade is a safe space for LGBT people, a town hall meeting is a safe space for the people of that town. Everyone has safe spaces and I would even go so far as to say everyone needs them.
Before you go demonizing people who do or don't believe Universities should be safe spaces, just know that technically, yes, all Universities should be safe spaces because a University should be a place in which every student strives for an education, but safe space doesn't mean unable to explore other ideas, it just means that no one should be persecuted or personally attacked by the words or actions of others. Saying "I'm a conservative" is not encroaching on anyone's safety, but "I think slavery should be legal" definitely is. It's all about context.
As for trigger warnings, and as a mentally disabled woman, I can tell you that they're helpful. That does not mean they aren't overused. Trigger warnings should be used for serious matters depending on who is in the class. If a student talks to the professor ahead of time then there should be no issue. A quick warning to class about sensitive topics such as rape, drug use or violence should also probably be mentioned, but, chances are, the only people who are going to need to leave the room are people who will be sent into panic attacks or PTSD episodes. Triggered doesn't mean made uncomfortable, it means debilitated. There is a balance.
I guess you could say I'm all for safe-spaces and trigger warnings, just not the perversions we see of them in all forms of the media. They're always been there, even when you didn't know what they were. If you're a nice person who extends openness, understanding and compassion to your fellow human beings, then safe spaces and trigger warnings shouldn't bother you because they don't really bother anyone who has compassion in the first place. So please, stop arguing, start loving, and start forming healthy discourse and discussions without ridiculing the mentally ill.
