
Law Professor's Response to Black Lives Matter Shirt Complaint - rishabhd
http://backspace.com/notes/2016/07/law-professors-response-to-black-lives-matter-shirt-complaint.php
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simbalion
They can go to a different school.

This is a disturbing trend of arrogance amongst some folks who think they can
enter into a culture which existed before they did, and demand it assimilate
to their standards. If the school allows professors to express themselves in
their choice of clothing then the discomfort of a few students should not be
enough to challenge that.

Anyone who's really intellectually prepared for College, especially in the
United States where the 1st amendment is so important to everyone, should
probably know all of that without having to be told. Maybe I'm wrong, but I
don't think so.

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relics443
Notice how I never demanded anyone do anything. I simply stated how I would
feel. Now it's up to the professor to decide whether it's more important for
them to do their job correctly, or make sure everyone knows how they feel.
Just because they're allowed to make their students uncomfortable, doesn't
mean they should.

And naturally I'd assume you'd have no problem with a professor wearing a
"white lives matter" shirt? And that you'd respond similarly to people who
complain if one does?

~~~
simbalion
Why would I care what T-Shirt a person wears?

Being easily manipulated is not a virtue or positive trait. It's not going to
help you with natural selection. People who get offended by things other
people say or by the clothing they wear are taking the wrong path in life.

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relics443
A) if I would be in a class where the professor was wearing a "black lives
matter" shirt, it would be a constant distraction to me. That would take away
from my education. It might even be considered theft of my tuition dollars.
Professors should stay away from endorsing inflammatory topics. There are just
too many issues with it (one mentioned above, risk of alienating students,
causing fear of retribution for dissent, etc...)

B) if a student came in wearing a "white lives matter," or more extremely, a
"black lives don't matter" shirt, how much backlash would there be? I'm
genuinely curious what HN thinks. From what I've seen, that student would
become public enemy #1, and would most likely be expelled from the school.

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gerwitz
The professor clearly responded to your "tuition dollars" concern, so I'm
going to ignore A). But B) is an interesting question that I will assume is
sincere.

"White Lives Matter" is likely to be controversial for two reasons. First, it
misses the point of the Black Lives Matter slogan, as the professor addressed
quite well. Scan his response for "focus and exclusion" for detail, there.
Second, "White Lives Matter" does not stand alone as a statement in today's
cultural context. No one could wear such a shirt and claim it was anything
other than a counterpoint to "Black Lives Matter". Thus, in 2016, that
counter-slogan comes with a very strong implication of "black lives don't
matter." Which brings us to your more extreme case.

Wearing a shirt that proclaimed "black lives don't matter" could be seen as a
wry commentary on American culture, if worn by a black student already known
by their peers to be an activist for civil rights. Even then, the face value
of that statement means it should be verboten.

And that face value is, I'm confident, what you mean by your question. I
certainly hope that any university would indeed expel a student (after a
warning) who insisted on making the statement that the lives of other people
do not matter. The social purpose of universities is to improve society by
increasing the knowledge and awareness of its members. "Other people don't
matter" is an interesting stance to take for a socratic dialog around
solipsism, but as a personal statement is clearly opposed to the mission of
any respectable education institution.

Your questioning itself strongly suggests that you (like many) sense an
invisible "only" before "black lives matter." I'd like to encourage you to re-
read the "focus and exclusion" portion of the professor's response.

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tomohawk
"Premise: Saying “Black Lives Matter” is an expression of racist hatred of
white people."

BLM refers to not just the statement, but also the organization and what it
does and encourages.

If you look at the BLM twitter feed, you'll see plenty of pictures of BLM
supporters wearing T Shirts saying things like "Assata taught me" (Referring
to Assata Shakur, the cop killer).

BLM organizes events where they chant things like "pigs in a blanket, fry'em
like bacon". The pigs in a blanket referring to cops in body bags.

It's sad when someone like a law professor thinks its ok to identify with such
an organization.

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zaphar
You are making several of the exact same rhetorical and logical mistakes he
points out in his letter.

    
    
        History doesn’t matter. Therefore sequences of cause and effect can be ignored (or even inverted).
    

You are focusing on recent history and ignoring the preceding history.

    
    
        What you think something means is the same as what it actually means.
    

He already gives an excellent takedown in his letter for that.

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tomjen3
Why was this posted here?

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brador
Attempted censorship? Entitlement of a paying class? Anonymous accusations?.
Hot topics in the current year.

