The Primary Mission of the University Should Be Social Justice | Berkeley

This interesting conversation includes four participants who are current or former students of University of California Berkeley. The claim they considered: The primary mission of the university should be Social Justice.

Unsurprisingly, the meaning of “Social Justice” is touched upon, but the necessity of a definition is bypassed by some who disagree with the claim. Instead, they argue that the primary task of a university is to prepare students to think critically rather than promote particular issues.
At the same time, Social Justice, conceived as some form of equal access, is considered fundamental in truth-seeking by at least one participant who disagrees with the claim.

After the claim receives criticism from some participants, Peter reveals that it’s based on words from the president of Portland State University.

Defining the primary mission of the university is vital; please share what you believe the primary mission ought to be.

This conversation was recorded at UC Berkeley on April 19, 2022.

__________

Connect with Dr. Peter Boghossian: https://linktr.ee/peterboghossian

Book: "How to Have Impossible Conversations: A Very Practical Guide" by Peter Boghossian & James Lindsay
https://www.amazon.com/dp/0738285323/ref=cm_sw_r_api_i_7DPKY2S21SSNAV8PCBW3_0

This work is only possible because of your generous support. The best way to support is by sharing with your friends or becoming a paid subscriber on Substack: https://boghossian.substack.com

__________

Chapters
0:00 Intro
0:25 Agree w/claim
2:28 Slightly Disagree w/claim
6:13 Strongly disagree w/claim
8:30 Should the primary mission of the university be truth?
13:03 Could you be persuaded to move to a different line?
14:08 Discussing data vs anecdotes
16:37 Further discussion and Wrap Up

#peterboghossian #berkeley #socialjustice