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The Expansion of Trigger Warnings and Its Detriment to Higher Education Cody Roane

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The Expansion of Trigger Warnings and Its Detriment to Higher Education Cody Roane The Expansion of Trigger Warnings and its Detriment to Higher Education Cody Roane Introduction Trigger warnings became prevalent in the academic scope around 2010 when they left the confines of the blogosphere and made their way towards college campuses and universities nationwide and around the globe. More and more professors were feeling the urge to place trigger warnings atop class syllabi and assignments that might be deemed insensitive to students who have suffered traumas in their personal lives. The prevalence of trigger warnings has raised the issue of class autonomy and the operations of universities as a whole. There needs to be research into the bigger picture that trigger warnings cover and how a trickle down affect has been created. This larger scope encompasses the idea of “safe spaces,” the ideology of microaggressions and the idea that trigger warnings are a form of and lead to censorship across academia. This is important to me because knowledge and education are important aspects to the advancement of society. The more ideas society is exposed to, the easier it becomes to solve problems facing the world. The questions that are raised are thus: are trigger warnings useful, who defines a trigger, have trigger warning been abused and do trigger warnings lead to censorship? The History Trigger warnings were initially created in internet blog forums, most popular being feminist blogs regarding sexual abuse cases. In this early form, the trigger warnings were doing what they were intended: preparing most of the audience of the blogs of possibly sensitive content. “Initially, trigger warnings were used in self-help and feminist forums to help readers who might have post traumatic stress disorder to avoid graphic content that might cause painful memories, flashbacks, or panic attacks. Some websites, like Bodies Under Siege, a self-injury support message board, developed systems of adding abbreviated topic tags—from SI (self inJury) to ED (eating disorders)—to particularly explicit posts” (Jarvie, 2014). As stated in Susannah Breslin’s 2010 blog post on True/Slant, the use of these trigger warnings grew and it became taboo for posts to merit the trigger warning label. With the continual growth of social media and the internet, these trigger warnings began to expand towards content outside of the blogosphere. According to Jarvie, people, television shows and publications have been suggested to be followed with a trigger warning. Trigger warnings made their way to university campuses through Bailey Loverin, a student at UC Santa Barbara who watched a video for class that depicted a rape scene. Loverin had previously been physically abused by a prior boyfriend and the depiction of the rape scene seemed to trigger emotions that come from the memories (Wilson, 2015). This was in 2014. She later proposed an idea alongside the UCSB student government association for her school to have a resolution passed that all professors should include trigger warnings for all possibly triggering material. This is where one gets their first glimpse at trying to define a trigger warning. The resolution proposes that triggers be defined as such: “The current suggested list of Trigger Warnings includes Rape, Sexual Assault, Abuse, Self-InJurious Behavior, Suicide, Graphic Violence, Pornography, Kidnapping, and Graphic Depictions of Gore” (Calderon, Wakefield, 2014). By listing what defines a trigger warning, the resolution is finally giving a formal written definition of content in need of a trigger warning. The resolution later lists that future topics that could be deemed triggering can be voted upon and passed by the school legislature. The resolution goes on to say that triggers are not limited to sexual assault and violence, creating the notion that these are topics seen as more capable of triggering individuals than others. The resolution continues to go on to explain that trigger warnings are to be used “for content not covered by the rating system used by the MPAA or TV warnings” (Calderon, Wakefield, 2014). The resolution was later passed by the UCSB student government association but has yet to be adopted as a university wide sanction. Trigger warnings have since found their way into higher education, affecting the classroom think space. The Use Advocates for the use of trigger warnings cite the simple nature that trigger warnings impose. These advocates see trigger warnings as a means to allow those affected by trauma an ease of access to the material. Loverin wrote a New York Times op-ed piece regarding the state of trigger warnings and their intended use: “Supporters contend that they allow survivors the chance to prepare to face the material, adding new perspectives. Without a trigger warning, a survivor might black out, become hysterical or feel forced to leave the room. This effectively stops their learning process…these warnings are less about protection and more about preparation” (Loverin, 2014). Loverin goes on to articulate that trigger warnings “doesn’t ban the content or excuse students from learning it. Even when the resolution proposed by her and her fellow students at UCSB states that “Having a trigger warning on a syllabus allows a student the choice to be present, gives a student advance notice of possible triggers and the choice to be present or not instead of having to leave in the middle of a class or lecture” (Calderon, Wakefield, 2014). The resolution also goes on to state that students shouldn’t be docked points for missing classes associated with possibly triggering material. Students do seem to have the option to leave class and disassociate themselves with the material altogether. The opinion that trigger warnings provide an ease of access is shared by Alison Kafer, a professor of feminist studies at Southwestern University. No stranger to traumatic experiences, Kafer stands a liaison for the disabled population. A victim to an arsonist attack, Kafer is now deemed physically disabled. Her stance on the use of trigger warnings: “In this framing, the trigger warning is about making the content of the talk accessible to anyone who wants it; quite simply, it’s about accessing the material, not censoring or avoiding it” (Kafer, 2016). In context, Kafer is referring to Margaret Price’s, an associate professor of English at The Ohio State University, “warning” prior to a class discussion, which brings up the idea that students must be comfortable in order to access and learn the material. Trigger warnings are used to start and open the discussion by having those affected by traumatic material to ease themselves into the material. Unlike Loverin, Kafer is not suggesting that students have the option to avoid triggering material. She wants students to have easier access to sensitive material, access meaning that people can say within their bodies, moving comfortably within themselves to think aptly. Kafer continues to discuss the idea that spaces change, ones once deemed accessible to become inaccessible with the creation of a discussion. Kafer uses three examples when discussing triggering event, one being a BDSM convention. While attending a reasonably safe space, certain warnings were given about sexual traumas and what these demonstrations could potentially be interpreted by the audience. However, Kafer quips that the demonstrators leave out other traumas that could be present. And a gentleman wearing a hat emblazoned with word “ARSON” was in attendance, triggering Kafer. Here, Kafer adds that she “engaged in passing,” passing being the act of “hiding” one’s anxieties and triggered state while in the presence of a general public. This brings up Kafer asking these questions: “Is sexual trauma the only trauma relevant in or to feminist and queer spaces? Or is disclosure of queer desire the only disclosure pertinent to such spaces?” She couples this with the prior statement that if the guy wearing the hat wore a different hat, she possibly wouldn’t have been triggered. She previously applauded the demonstrators for their awareness to warn of potential triggers and traumas the demonstration might impose. The presence of the “ARSON” hat, however, erases this viewpoint. Kafer puts the blame of her trigger on something unrelated to the demonstration and unawares of her internal and personalized trauma. She brings in the idea of assumptions when warning others of sensitive subJects and introduces the idea that trigger warnings are specific to the beholder. This creates the notion that trigger warnings have taken a step farther in their use and leads to the abuse of the practice (Kafer, 2016). The American Association of University Professors has an interesting take on the use of trigger warnings: “There are reasons, however, for concern that even voluntary use of trigger warnings included on syllabi may be counterproductive to the educational experience. Such trigger warnings conflate exceptional individual experience of trauma with the anticipation of trauma for an entire group, and assume that individuals will respond negatively to certain content…by calling attention to certain content in a given work, trigger warnings also signal an expected response to the content (e.g., dismay, distress, disapproval), and eliminate the element of surprise and spontaneity that can enrich the reading experience and provide critical insight (2014). The Abuse The idea that professors should provide trigger warnings influenced a survey taken online by members of the College Art Association and the Modern Language Association. Here, more than half of the respondents stated that they voluntarily used trigger warnings (Downs, 2015). Of the same survey, one-fourth or respondents stated they used trigger warnings more than once. Less than one percent had no trigger warning policy at their universities and even less stated students came to them wishing for the implementation of trigger warnings. Turnout for the survey was low, with only 800 of the more than 12,000 contacted responding.
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