HomeUploadUpload DirectHotlinkRandomAbouttheme toggle
Expand

The Importance of Uncomfortable Conversations

Views:863
@ReasonVids

'Uncensored' author and new college grad Zachary R. Wood explains why his generation is so scared of viewpoint diversity.

Subscribe to our YouTube channel: http://youtube.com/reasontv
Like us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Reason.Magazine/
Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/reason
Subscribe to our podcast at iTunes: https://goo.gl/az3a7a

Reason is the planet's leading source of news, politics, and culture from a libertarian perspective. Go to reason.com for a point of view you won't get from legacy media and old left-right opinion magazines.

----------------

Zachary R. Wood came to national attention when, as a undergraduate at ultra-liberal Williams College, the student group that he helped lead was pressured to cancel its invitation to Suzanne Venker, a conservative author and critic of feminism.

Activists accused him of "causing actual mental, social, psychological, and physical harm" to his fellow students, and "paying for...the continued dispersal of violent ideologies that kill our black and brown (trans) femme sisters." After he invited the former National Review writer John Derbyshire to speak, the university president unilaterally shut the event down.

The self-described "liberal Democrat" and Hillary Clinton supporter says his commitment to open dialogue comes from dealing with his mother's mental illness, his frequent moves as a child, and being a black scholarship student at mostly white, wealthy schools. "I was coming from a disadvantaged community and going to a school in a more affluent community and that meant I had to be open and making friends with peers from very different backgrounds." He notes that he and his new schoolmates were quick to project both negative and positive stereotypes on one another. "Part of what that experience challenged me to do was to assess those stereotypes and resist the inclination to make them."

In Uncensored: My Life and Uncomfortable Conversations at the Intersection of Black and White America, Wood writes about the urgent need for civil discourse and open debate, especially on college campuses. The recent graduate talked with Reason about how administrators are as much or more to blame as student activists for the repressive atmosphere at universities, and why he looks forward to exploring issues of class mobility and how school choice can benefit low-income minorities in his work as a journalist.

Edited by Ian Keyser. Cameras by Jim Epstein and Kevin Alexander.

'Machinery' by Kai Engel is licensed under CC BY NC 4.0

Photo Credits:

Russ R. Scott/newzulu/Newscom

Jeremy Hogan/Polaris/Newscom

Wu Xiaoling Xinhua News Agency/Newscom

libertarian
,
reason magazine
,
reason.com
,
reason.tv
,
reasontv
    Thumbnail for Stossel: What Trump's Court Pick Means for Liberty5:19
    Stossel: What Trump's Court Pick Means for Liberty
    ReasonVids
    909 views
    Thumbnail for Why I Stopped Being Anti-Woke55:47
    Why I Stopped Being Anti-Woke
    invidious
    145 views
    Thumbnail for Trump Is 'Destroying' Regulations7:58
    Trump Is 'Destroying' Regulations
    ReasonVids
    932 views
    Thumbnail for The #1 BEST Remedy for Dental Plaque (TARTAR) | Dr. Eric Berg DC5:40
    The #1 BEST Remedy for Dental Plaque (TARTAR) | Dr. Eric Berg DC
    invidious
    67 views
    Thumbnail for Making chemical fireflies | NileRed Shorts1:22
    Making chemical fireflies | NileRed Shorts
    invidious
    405 views
    Thumbnail for Halo 3 - Big Team Battle Capture the Flag - Valhalla (XBOX ONE) | Mystical Gaming22:48
    Halo 3 - Big Team Battle Capture the Flag - Valhalla (XBOX ONE) | Mystical Gaming
    invidious
    341 views
    Thumbnail for Walkolution - The Ultimate Home Office Setup | WALKOLUTION - WORK AND WALK2:03
    Walkolution - The Ultimate Home Office Setup | WALKOLUTION - WORK AND WALK
    invidious
    358 views
    Thumbnail for WHERE'S CHICKY ALL SEASONS & EPISODES 🔴 LIVE CARTOON | Best Cartoon Collection for Kids | Where's Chicky? - Cartoon in English1:00
    WHERE'S CHICKY ALL SEASONS & EPISODES 🔴 LIVE CARTOON | Best Cartoon Collection for Kids | Where's Chicky? - Cartoon in English
    invidious
    338 views
    Thumbnail for E-Cigarettes and the Law: NJOY's Craig Weiss on Proposed Regulations6:59
    E-Cigarettes and the Law: NJOY's Craig Weiss on Proposed Regulations
    ReasonVids
    955 views
    Thumbnail for Do NOT Google search "Alex" right now. | Phoenix SC3:07
    Do NOT Google search "Alex" right now. | Phoenix SC
    invidious
    365 views
    Thumbnail for Rep. Jeff Flake on How the GOP Can Get Its Groove Back3:23
    Rep. Jeff Flake on How the GOP Can Get Its Groove Back
    ReasonVids
    905 views
    Thumbnail for Cheapest Gutter Cleaning Without Ladder | Genius Asian7:50
    Cheapest Gutter Cleaning Without Ladder | Genius Asian
    diy.topic
    855 views
    Thumbnail for Is it satire tho?0:14
    Is it satire tho?
    AOUisgay
    368 views
    Thumbnail for Laura Loomer 1:06
    Laura Loomer
    bestofupgoat
    341 views
    Thumbnail for My Top 10 MXC's Most Painful Eliminations of Season 2 | JurassicGodzillaFan2:15
    My Top 10 MXC's Most Painful Eliminations of Season 2 | JurassicGodzillaFan
    invidious
    438 views
    Thumbnail for Muzzle Flashes0:35
    Muzzle Flashes
    bestofupgoat
    443 views
    Thumbnail for Booty Blasted0:04
    Booty Blasted
    voatcatbox
    359 views
    Thumbnail for He was not a good boy0:27
    He was not a good boy
    bestofvoatxyz
    821 views
    Thumbnail for America's First Rebel: Roger Williams and the Birth of Liberty9:14
    America's First Rebel: Roger Williams and the Birth of Liberty
    ReasonVids
    910 views
    Thumbnail for Japanese Cortana hits different | Wabbin2:18
    Japanese Cortana hits different | Wabbin
    invidious
    424 views
    Thumbnail for pride month in a nutshell0:18
    pride month in a nutshell
    bestofvoatxyz
    583 views
    Thumbnail for He did this to me one time!! A lot of people get mad but I actually thought it was funny. He told me the chain broke and not to move then BAM! I'd buy him a beer1:00
    He did this to me one time!! A lot of people get mad but I actually thought it was funny. He told me the chain broke and not to move then BAM! I'd buy him a beer
    bestofupgoat
    236 views
    Thumbnail for มวยมันส์วันศุกร์ 14/03/2025 | True4U1:00
    มวยมันส์วันศุกร์ 14/03/2025 | True4U
    invidious
    189 views
    Thumbnail for UN AÑO MÁS SIN EL "9" PARA UNIVERSITARIO | FÚTBOL EXCITANTE | Carlos Orozco1:37:10
    UN AÑO MÁS SIN EL "9" PARA UNIVERSITARIO | FÚTBOL EXCITANTE | Carlos Orozco
    invidious
    94 views
    Thumbnail for Video of New Orleans truck attack.0:10
    Video of New Orleans truck attack.
    bestofupgoat
    156 views

points

Permalink
Reply
libertarian
,
reason magazine
,
reason.com
,
reason.tv
,
reasontv
TOS  •  Add Keywords  •  Donate  •   Analytics  •   DMCA  •   Puzzle