I used to think shouting down a speaker was a valid protest, but a talk at my school changed my mind.
Last semester, a professor from another state was invited to give a talk on immigration policy. His views are pretty conservative, and a big group of students planned to protest by blocking the doors and chanting to shut it down. I was totally on board with that plan. But then, my history professor, Dr. Chen, said something in class that stuck with me. She asked, 'How do you know you're right if you never hear the other side?' That made me pause. I decided to go to the talk instead of the protest. It was tense, and I disagreed with a lot of what he said, but I also heard his actual arguments, not just the sound bites. I even asked a question during the Q&A. It didn't change my views, but it made my disagreement smarter. Now I think letting the talk happen and then challenging the ideas is stronger. Has anyone else gone from wanting to cancel a talk to wanting to debate it instead?