I thought this was an interesting article about the type of cross-cultural experiences that could help everyone understand each other better, if not exactly agree with each other: My Semester with the Snowflakes. The part that got me thinking most:

As the younger students started to express their thoughts, the young woman (truly a unicorn of a human) used the word “safe space” and it hit me forcefully. I come from a place where when I hear that term, I roll my eyes into the back of my vacant skull and laugh from the bottom of my potbelly. This time, I was literally in shock. It hit me that what I thought a “safe space” meant, was not accurate. This young woman, the one who used the phrase, isn’t scared of anything. She is a life-force of goodness and strength. She doesn’t need anyone to provide a comfortable environment for her. What she meant by “safe space” was that she was happy to be in an environment where difficult subjects can be discussed openly, without the risk of disrespect or harsh judgment. This works both ways. What I mean is, this young woman was comfortable, in this university setting, wrestling with things like the Aristotelian idea of some humans being born as “natural slaves.” She was quite comfortable in that space. The question was, how comfortable was the 52-year-old white guy in that discussion? Did it make me uncomfortable? Yes. I’m grateful for the discomfort. Thinking about things I don’t understand or have, for most of my life, written off, is a good thing.

Now obviously, not every person who wants a safe space will interpret the term by this very reasonable definition. But as I like to remind my husband when he reads an article that outrages him, something wouldn’t be in the news if it weren’t unusual. I tend to think the cases of entitled, elitist, angry young people screaming about their “safe spaces” really are unusual. It’s important to be aware of problem children so we can help prevent that from becoming the attitude norm, but we shouldn’t overreact and assume most students share the outlook of the very worst examples.