General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: Suppose a group has declared a "safe space" on public property or a place of public accommodation [View all]gollygee
(22,336 posts)It's often, for instance, a dorm designated for LGBT students, or students of color. And those people might have white or straight friends who enter the space, but it's usually a voluntary thing, like "please don't enter this space unless you are friendly toward our need for a safe space." And if people enter the space and start harassing people, then they would be asked to leave because they're harassing people. But if people are nice, there isn't usually any issue.
The trickier situation is probably when people are well-intended but accidentally hurtful - like nice, kind people who have ignorance about some issue or another. It can be stressful for LGBT people and people of color to have to educate people all the time, and again they need to have the opportunity at some times to focus on their schoolwork without having to deal with that kind of extra stress. That is an additional challenge other students don't have, and therefore it can cause them to have more stress and more trouble in school than other students. But I imagine students who want safe spaces would have to deal with situations like that on a case-by-case basis.
It's helpful for LGBT college students and students of color to not have to be on edge all day and all night among people who might be racist or homophobic. They can relax and concentrate on their studies. The stress of college is difficult for all students, and to have an additional layer of stress due to racism and/or homophobia makes college more difficult for those students and can cause them to have more trouble in school. I think it's completely reasonable for them to want a space to relax. Not the whole university, but just a study lounge or their dorm (where they sleep and study.)
I was at a place that designated an LGBT safe-space - a room for LGBT people to have for themselves after the Orlando shootings - where non-LGBT people were not welcome. It was presented as voluntary but we were strongly asked to not enter that space and IMO you'd have to be an asshole to go in when you've been asked to stay out. And again, if an asshole entered and acted like an asshole, it would be an issue of harassment. But I doubt they had a legal way to keep someone who was not LGBT out, unless they specifically started harassing people. Luckily, there were no horrible people present and their space was respected.