Universities worldwide pride themselves on being hubs of diversity; safe spaces in which intellectual debate can be spurred between students from different backgrounds with various — at times contradictory — beliefs and outlooks. NYU Abu Dhabi is, rightfully so, one of these universities that attempts to enable students worldwide to feel at home: secure, comforted and able to be their authentic selves.

Safe spaces are defined as “place[s] intended to be free of bias, conflict, criticism, or potentially threatening actions, ideas, or conversations.” The prominence of safe spaces has increased as societies worldwide have begun to acknowledge the rights of marginalized and minority groups that were, or continue to be, discriminated against. This has left them silenced in their own communities. These spaces are not necessarily tangible, but are rather created based on the environment established by a community. This, at NYUAD, can be provided through Student Interest Groups such as the Muslim Student Association, the Christian Fellowship, as well as systems dedicated to mental wellbeing such as REACH and counselling. All this is done to create a respective and welcoming space.

Safe spaces are a privilege for some, but they are a necessity for many. They ensure one’s ability to express themselves without being vulnerable to any sort of discrimination. However, one must question the extent to which the comfort provided in safe spaces — on campus and in classrooms — acts as more of a restriction rather than a means of liberation. Safe spaces may act as an obstacle to furthering personal knowledge, increasing cultural exploration and exchange, as well as confronting uncomfortable concepts and experiences.

During my January Term, conversation arose in class regarding the purposes of safe spaces and their restrictions. While we all agreed on the necessity of safe spaces in order to protect marginalized groups and create a secure environment, different opinions emerged based on the notion that safe spaces have become less of an advantage and more of a liability. This was primarily based on the idea that safe spaces have limited the information taught in classes, with increased political correctness and an inability to debate contrasting views or specific matters without potentially insulting or violating someone’s safe space.

Classrooms have been referred to as safe spaces, where students are encouraged to express themselves comfortably in a non-threatening and unbiased environment, but is that not paradoxical? How is one to express controversial ideas, or those that may potentially be biased or critical? Additionally, does that not contrast the purpose of classrooms in these institutions — to educate students, to widen their horizons and worldview, to expose them to new perspectives that may be at conflict with their own and either reinstate or alter their own?

How are students expected to grow and prosper — intellectually, socially, personally — if they do not confront issues that discomfort them or are “potentially threatening” or “critical?”

Ignorance may be bliss, but bliss is not a merit.

From my own experience, safe spaces can be a limitation. For example, I am taking a colloquium that uses the Israeli-Palestinian conflict as a primary case study. As a Palestinian, I am therefore subject to being exposed to contradictory perspectives that discomfort me, far from being in what I perceive to be a safe space. I must also strip myself of my personal biases towards the conflict and allow myself to analyze it from a neutral viewpoint. If I were to confine myself in the reigns of a safe space, I would not be able to generate more knowledge on the matter, to understand both points of view, to reassess situations and conflicts. However, the university being a safe space provides me with the liberty to express my Palestinian identity and my Muslim identity freely on campus. While the importance of obtaining safe spaces is undeniable, the extent of their spheres and their potentially negative consequences act as a limitation, making it a matter of concern. The question persists: how do we establish an environment where students feel safe while also exposing them to perspectives that may make them uncomfortable or anxious?