The issue of emotional harm, which at first seems complicated to a prohibitive degree, can also be applied in a similar fashion. Law and custom have united -- for the most part -- to define other instances of unacceptable speech in public society and even in the privacy of a business. Sexual harassment and racial discrimination are the tow most well-known and easily illustrated instances of speech that does not actually present a danger being banned. More stringent interpretations of sexual and racist speech might be appropriate in a school setting, but restricting speech much more than it is in adult society does the students a disservice, denying them the ability to take responsibility for their own speech.

Protecting the students' ability to become responsible and educated self-directed adults is, I believe, the primary responsibility of all youth educators. That being said, there was an instance in a class I...
[ View Full Essay]