The Freedom to Offend

"What is freedom of expression?" one may ask. "Without the freedom to offend, it ceases to exist," says writer Salman Rushdie. What sounds like an idealist encouragement to promote free debate can fast turn into a mantra to express controversial opinions at all costs. On a campus of approximately 2,600 people, news travels fast-and so do offensive statements made somewhere in public. So how do we walk the fine line between free expression and offensive comments? How do we cherish our right to speak our minds and keep our friends at the same time? "It all depends on audience and context," says Melanie Brown, assistant professor of English. In the academic context, she recommends reflecting on the true purpose of commenting on a controversial topic. "You have to ask yourself what you are trying to accomplish as the student who pushes people's perspectives. I hope that students can learn to voice their opinions without crossing people's boundaries." Brown acknowledges that, "when you voice your opinion people see a certain image of you. I appreciate students who are thoughtfully assertive and am especially pleased when students foster debate amongst themselves. It is my role to ensure that they do so respectfully."

Sr. Sally Ann Brickner, director of the Peace and Justice Center, chooses her battles wisely. In her role, she has helped the center advocate benefits for people in same-sex partnerships, despite her membership in the Catholic order of the Franciscan Sisters.

"Being a member of the religious community provides a person with opportunities, so does having an educational background," says Brickner.

However, she recalls occasions when not everybody liked the actions the center took to illustrate its views. In the spring of 2007, staff members tied blue ribbons around trees around campus to advocate peace in Iraq. The ribbons were cut down over night and left lying next to the trees.

But Brickner nonetheless thinks that she has the ability to be herself and to voice her opinions on this campus, while acknowledging that some people might not be experiencing that freedom.

"I am free to be me, but I don't know about individuals who have a different sexual orientation-how free are they? I am not scared of my identity and don't feel the need to hide it. But it's because of my position that I have that ability. I think that St. Norbert has avenues for students to exercise theirs, but they have to know the system."

When asked which communication techniques she would recommend for respectful exchange of opinions, Brickner says, "One aspect of communicating your truth in respectful dialogue is owning it by using sentences that start with 'I feel' and that do not judge the other person. Another aspect of civil dialogue is to hear the other person express his or her beliefs."

Also, Brickner points out that consistency should not exclude the possibility of learning new perspectives. "It's a lifelong thing," she says. "Ghandi never claimed to be consistent; he wanted to always incorporate new insights."

Ryan Pavlik'09 has also handled his share of controversial issue around campus - mainly in his role as ally coordinator and past president of Rainbow Alliance. In advocating LGBTQ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and questioning) rights, he says that he is willing to take the risk of people disliking him for his views.

"If people's dislike of me serves a purpose, then it's worth it," he says. "If I have made you question your assumptions, I have succeeded. If we aren't controversial enough, nobody talks about it. If nobody talks about it, people take it for granted." By "it," Pavlik means the fact that Rainbow Alliance helps create a more comfortable climate for LGBTQ individuals at SNC.

However, Pavlik also knows that the group's ability to raise controversy has limits. "If we are too controversial, we could potentially lose our recognition. But then again, this would enable us to do something we have been scared to do at our last event. There have been programs we would have loved to do that would have been really beneficial to the college, but the risk was too high."

April Grant '09 has spent four years at SNC and has mixed feelings about people's ability to express themselves on this campus. "I feel like students here don't want to talk about touchy topics," she says. "I find that interesting, because I think there is a reason why they are uncomfortable."

Grant, whose African American background has made her experience on campus challenging at times, also says, "I have heard people say that there is no such thing as racism, but then they make horrible statements about other people. Unfortunately, I don't trust many other people, because they smile at you and then go home and say something else. A lot of the people here won't grow from hearing different opinions. It's okay for people to have their opinion, but if that opinion is wrong and judgmental, that's not okay."

Grant recognizes the difficulty in balancing assertiveness with making sure nobody gets offended. "I have a couple of friends who I really want to confront about a few things, because it's uncomfortable not to know what they think," she says and adds, "especially if it represents you as a person. It's hard to decide whether or not it's worth potentially offending them."

While she considers her experience at SNC to have been challenging at times, Grant also appreciates the things she has learned here. "I am happy that I didn't transfer because this school has made me stronger," she says. "I know now how to deal with people who think I am inferior and I know how to confront that."

Stephanie DalSanto'09 transferred from SNC to UW-Madison after one semester here, but returned during her sophomore year. Although she says that "there is a lot of pressure to conform to your friends' opinions," she appreciates the smaller class size and the opportunities SNC has offered her.