Fun Home is an award-winning, New York Times best-selling graphic novel and memoir that was adapted for the theatre and recently won five Tonys, including the coveted Tony Award for Best Musical. The book and the Broadway show both deal with the very personal, challenging, and emotional issues of its author, Alison Bechdel, including growing up, discovering she is a lesbian, and learning her father, who commits suicide, was gay. The book was assigned to incoming Duke University freshmen as part of their summer reading list, but as Claire Ballentine at The Chronicle, Duke’s student newspaper, reports, several Christian students strongly objected to the book and refused to read it, citing their deeply-held religious beliefs…. “I feel as if I would have to compromise my personal Christian moral beliefs to read it,” Brian Grasso wrote on the Duke University Class of 2019 Facebook page, a closed group. He cited its “graphic visual depictions of sexuality,” as part of his reason. “Duke did not seem to have people like me in mind,” he added. “It was like Duke didn’t know we existed, which surprises me.”
The idea that we as a society owe special consideration to Christians and Social Conservatives so as to not cause offense has always been one of my pet peeves. The expectation that they not be forced to confront ideas that don’t mesh with their own is as arrogant as it is offensive. Most of these folks would never dream of extending the same consideration to others they demand for themselves. It’s as if those of us who don’t believe as they do are expected to ensure they’re not exposed to ideas that run counter to their narrow morality. Now it seems that expectation applies to college curricula, and students who consider themselves Christians are claiming the right to refuse to read material they find “offensive.”
Silly me; I’ve always believed the purpose of higher education to be opening oneself to new ideas and examining ways of thinking not previously encountered. It would seem the expectation among many students these days is not to learn, but to have their current beliefs validated and affirmed as superior. Education is supposed to be about learning, not protecting the “deeply-held religious beliefs” of snowflakes who have no familiarity with the concept of critical thinking. The world doesn’t exist to protect your tender, sheltered sensibilities. Living, loving, and believing differently doesn’t make someone wrong; it makes them human.
For some, the idea of being exposed to concepts and beliefs outside their own narrow frame of reference is interpreted as “discrimination” against their “deeply-held religious beliefs”- “deeply held” in this case meaning the refusal to even consider other points of view. Why even go to college if not to learn? Expecting education your beliefs to be validated and affirmed isn’t education at all; it’s mental masturbation.
“It was like Duke didn’t know we existed.” Really?? This may come as a shock to some of these precious snowflakes, but it’s not the responsiblity of Duke University- or any other secular college or university- to cater to the beliefs of individual students. Your “personal Christian moral beliefs” don’t exempt you from completing coursework whose content you find offensive. No one is holding a gun to your head and forcing you to attend Duke. You accepted admission knowing full well what Duke was about (if you didn’t, that’s your own fault for not doing your due diligence). If you disagree with curriculum requirements, you’re free to find another course…or, even better, an institution that will cater to your prejudices and “deeply-held religious beliefs.” You don’t get to tell an institution of higher learning what course work you will or will not do because of your “personal Christian moral beliefs.” That may have been the bubble you grew up in, but here in the adult world, you don’t set the rules. Your responsibility is to follow the rules…or go somewhere willing to indulge your immaturity.
“I would not have read the book if the pictures were of heterosexual intercourse,” he said. “I am a Christian, and I do believe what the Bible says about homosexuality but I also know Christians recently and historically have harassed homosexuals, and I believe what the Bible says about harassing people and discrimination.”
So…you want to have your cake and eat it, too? Welcome to the real world, snowflake…where you don’t get to pick and choose which rules you follow. And before I forget, Fun Home isn’t pornography. Sometimes, understanding issues relevant to humanity (including those who beliefs and lifestyles don’t mirror your own) requires discussion of things like sex and sexuality. Sorry if that offends your tender sensibilities, but college isn’t mandatory. I’m sure Chick-Fil-A is hiring in your hometown.
Never mind that the homophobia exhibited by these students has nothing whatsoever to do with Christianity. They can’t cite the Gospel, because Jesus never preached against homosexuality or same-sex marriage. No, this is about expecting a secular university to cater to their personal prejudices and narrow homophobic morality. The idea that Duke owes their “personal Christian moral beliefs” consideration is as arrogant as it is absurd. From where I sit, these students have two choices: One, put on your big boy pants and accept that your beliefs aren’t primary and worthy of being catered to, or Two, find a school that more closely reflects your refusal to open your mind to ideas other than the ones you cling to with every fiber of your being. There are plenty of Christian schools (Bob Jones, Regent, and Liberty Universities come immediately to mind) willing to embrace, validate and affirm your beliefs without forcing you to expand your horizons.
It’s time to get over yourselves and accept that while the larger world may respect your right to your beliefs, it’s under no obligation to cater to them. Your beliefs are no more- or less- special than any other member of humanity. You don’t get to expect that the rules be changed to cater to your “personal Christian moral beliefs.”
Welcome to the real world, y’all. Get over yourselves.
