The Tab is an open forum

This is a discussion we would like to open to the public in light of recent comments on a few Tab articles. Now, we love comments, don’t get us wrong. And we love all comments, whether they are critical of what we are saying, or in agreement with.

Why else would we be writing? The point of our articles is to inspire discussion among the student body – but as of late, the discussion seems to have been monopolized by a specific section of the student body who isn’t really willing to ‘discuss’.

With that in mind, The Tab is only what the students at the University make of it. Writers at The Tab are not assigned articles, so when complaints from students roll in about the content on the website, it almost comes as a shock… “But, you guys chose this.”

And, it comes as a particular shock when, after explaining the open forum format and inviting said complainers to write counter-pieces, they decide they don’t care enough to do that. Only to cause a scene and then return back to whatever they were doing before.

There is no point in calling out another student’s article if you are not willing to have an open and honest discussion with them about it. Of course not everyone is going to agree on any article ever. It would be ludicrous to expect that they would. Some will be offended, while others will *snap* in agreement. That’s journalism. The point is that we are offering you an open forum in which you can speak your mind.

The political climate in Western Massachusetts is profoundly known for being more liberal than other areas, and UMass Amherst is no exception. Hampshire County is considered one of America’s most liberal-friendly counties. Amherst’s neighboring town, Northampton, is one of the most lesbian-friendly areas in America.

That being said, one issue that easily occurs in the Pioneer Valley, and beyond, is that of political correctness. An issue you say? WHAT? 

Now political correctness is important, we are not denying this. However, the culture of political correctness that has sprung up around Amherst/NOHO in the past ten years is not a culture of political correctness at all, but a culture of shushing and hiding behind our, oftentimes understandable, ignorance.

How ignorant is it to ask? More often than not people are just uninformed rather than purposefully acting out maliciously. When someone asks a question, the answer to which you already know, you don’t know it because you came out of the womb brilliant, or because you’re some prodigy. You know it because somewhere along the line, somebody told you.

Explaining that something is inappropriate and defending people who are offensive are two entirely different things.

Discussion gives us the opportunity to address such issues in an objective manner, and educate rather than alienate.

According to The Telegraph and Elite Daily, being overly-politically correct has the ability to curtail freedom of speech and even stifle dialogue. The fear of being misinterpreted when talking about a controversial issue can cause self-censorship and deter any possible learning experiences that might shed further light on a topic. We are all so obsessed with being more PC than our friend next to us, that we never actually talk about anything.

Maybe the problem isn’t in the fact that our generation is trying to right the wrongs of our predecessors. Maybe it’s within the idea that we, as people, forget that new thoughts and ideas are based on previous concepts. We always have to start somewhere in order to progress.

Rather than acting as if we are experts on certain subjects – such as racism, sexism, transphobia and any other forms of prejudice – we could recognize that learning from one another through conversations can be informative without developing into defensive or condescending attitudes.

It’s OK to disagree with someone. It’s even OK to be  frustrated by opposing views. What’s not OK is attempting to claim that someone is a “dumbass” because they do not understand something in the same way you do.

Being informed is a privilege, and people often forget this. If you have been lucky enough in your life to take certain classes and talk with certain people who were able to explain these things to you, then you have been lucky enough. Instead of getting mad when someone says something you disagree with, try informing them calmly. This way instead of getting defensive about your comment, they might learn something that they can then go on to share with others.

PC culture has stifled discussion in a way that it was originally trying to work against. Students are afraid to raise their hands in class for fear of being called ignorant by their classmates. Instead, some students choose to remain silent, and leave class with no better understanding of what they were unsure about in the first place.

Nobody knows everything – so why do we claim to? If the entire intention of being politically correct is about inclusivity, then shouldn’t we be open-minded when talking about issues we are passionate about?

One of the unique features of The Tab is that it is an open forum. What this means is that any student at this University is welcome to submit an article regardless of their opinions, political beliefs, etc., as long as it has something to do with the university in some way. This includes everything from investigative journalism, to sex advice, to financial policies, to local artists. We’ve seen it all.

Disagree with us? Write a counter-piece.