Those who offend do not have the authority to decide they haven’t offended. That is not how this, or anything, works. I have often faced arguments boasting of freedom of speech, as if I am not using that same right. For those that fight political correctness, you may not personally feel the effects of it. You may not have a word that dehumanizes you like many people do. However, those words do exist and the whole “sticks and stones” argument is complete rubbish. Rubbish because harassment is illegal, we are all human beings, and words do hurt. In fact, emotional pain activates the same parts of the brain as physical pain. Of course words hurt. We created language with the intentions of creating shared meaning, some of these shared meanings are harsher than others (a fact we know very well and have created with that intention).

The issue is not about people magically being more sensitive than ever in history. Communication in general is easier than it ever has been, which makes it easier to both offend and express anger toward offensive phrases and images. It’s not as if people are being offended by mild, unemotional words like ‘laminator’ and ‘tree.’ People have always been offended by words whose purpose is to offend. In fact, being offended is the appropriate reaction. The question is, why are we trying to make it easier to offend people? Why are we shaming those trying to be respectful?

Often, people believe that political correctness is an infringement on their freedom of speech. This is not the case. It’s not as if “being PC” is sealing people’s mouths with duct tape. Others calling you out for harmful language is not an infringement on your rights as an American. It should really be your expectation. Not only because that’s how a conversation works, but because actions have consequences. The anti-political correctness is simply a measure to avoid taking responsibility for language choice. No one should feel entitled to lack of consequence. Why do you get so defensive when people respond to your words? Could it be that you know you’re offending but are used to getting away with it?

Brushing someone’s very real feelings off as them just “being PC” has worked more to silence voices and criticism than to create a dialogue about freedom of speech. Finally, let’s remember that using harmful language, particularly ones that negatively generalize entire populations, actually contribute to discrimination. Normalizing discrimination is not something that we should defend. Anyone who calls me a tiny, little, fragile, sensitive snowflake should know that those that face discrimination are the farthest from this description. They’ve had to be strong and resilient because of hate they face, the hate that happens when people are “just speaking their mind” or sharing their “opinions.” There is nothing stronger than standing up for yourself and others, and nothing weaker than excusing and promoting poor behavior. If those are your opinions, your values should be questioned rather than those you’re targeting.

https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/body-sense/201204/emotional-and-physical-pain-activate-similar-brain-regions

The voice of the campus community is printed here by The Racquet.