You know, it used to be that college was the place where ideas were tested, challenged, and sharpened. You’d argue with people, maybe get a little heated, but you’d walk away a little smarter, maybe even with some grudging respect for the other guy. That was the whole point—learning how to think, not being handed a set of pre-approved opinions stamped “progressive certified.” But somewhere between mandatory pronoun seminars and safe spaces with coloring books, that whole idea got run over by the social justice steamroller.
Now, if you’re a college student and you dare to raise your hand and say something gasp conservative—like, “Hey, maybe capitalism isn’t evil,” or, “I’m not so sure biological men should be playing women’s sports”—you’d better brace yourself. You might get shouted down, ostracized, or worse. And after what happened to Charlie Kirk, that “worse” just got real.
The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE) just dropped a bombshell survey, and it paints a bleak picture of where campus free speech is heading. Half of college students now feel less comfortable attending or even speaking at events that involve controversial topics. And let’s not kid ourselves—we know what “controversial” means in this context. It’s not radical gender theory or anti-capitalist rants that scare students. Nope. It’s conservative voices, like Charlie Kirk’s, that are being branded radioactive.
#LetUsPray: An Ominous Moment for Free Speech in America
The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE) just released a new poll revealing that America is currently in a concerning and ominous moment for free speech. The poll found that “a record number of Americans… pic.twitter.com/uh2T5BY7nU
— TheFamilyFoundation (@KentuckyFamily) December 5, 2025
And why wouldn’t they be scared? Kirk was assassinated on a college campus. Assassinated. Just let that sink in for a second. A conservative speaker goes to a public university to give a talk—something we used to consider a normal part of academic life—and ends up dead. If that’s not a flashing red warning light about the state of discourse in higher ed, I don’t know what is.
And what did the FIRE survey find? Moderate and conservative students became less likely to support shouting down speakers, blocking events, or using violence. You’d think that would be good news. But in the same breath, the survey shows liberal students actually became more willing to support those exact same tactics. That’s right. Instead of seeing Kirk’s murder as a wake-up call, some on the left saw it as validation.
Conservative students are self-censoring less on campus — and the shift is happening across every type of university, including the Ivy League.
New data from @TheFIREorg shows a clear downward trend from 2021–25.
Who deserves the credit? Answer in poll that follows 👇 pic.twitter.com/Yo7s8SHmhL
— Eric Kaufmann (@epkaufm) December 2, 2025
So much for the “violence breeds violence” mantra, huh? The left loves to toss that phrase around when it fits their narrative, but here they are, doubling down on the very tactics that led to one of the ugliest campus incidents in years. And don’t expect the administration to do anything about it. At most schools, the faculty lounge might as well have a portrait of Che Guevara hanging next to their diversity statement.
Here’s a radical idea: start treating disruptions for what they are—attacks on the very idea of free speech. If you shout down a speaker or block access to an event, you’re not some brave activist—you’re a thug in a hoodie. You don’t get a gold star for “raising awareness.” You get expelled. And if you physically assault someone or destroy property? You get arrested. Full stop.
Faculty and administrators enabling this nonsense? Fired. No cushy sabbatical, no quiet retirement package. You made your bed, now go sell lattes in it. And don’t forget to spell my name right on the cup.
What Charlie Kirk stood for—civil discourse, bold ideas, engagement without fear—is now under open assault. He didn’t go to campuses to scream people down. He went to talk. To listen. To challenge people to think for themselves. And for that, someone decided he didn’t deserve to live.
If our colleges want to be anything more than ideological training camps for the perpetually offended, they need to make a choice. Either restore the marketplace of ideas—or accept that you’re producing not leaders, but lemmings. And if the only way your worldview survives is by silencing the opposition, maybe it’s not as strong as you think.
Either way, you don’t get to call that “education.”
