Professor Kyle Hetrick assigns this reading, “A Racial Slur, a Viral Video, and a Reckoning,” in his FYW 150 course titled “University Issues.” You can download a PDF copy of the reading here.

Written by Dan Levin, this essay from the New York Times looks at an incident where a student lost her college acceptance after video footage of a past incident of her using a racial slur was released and went viral on social media. This incident drew nationwide attention, with some people arguing that the outcome was just, and others arguing that it did more harm than good to the student.

Professor Hetrick explains how articles like these demonstrate how judging what should and shouldn’t be protected isn’t cut and dry, and notes that his students tend to have strong opinions on this particular case. He offers the following questions to spark a class discussion:

• Is Ms. Groves somebody who should be canceled?
•  Is it okay for Mr. Galligan to weaponize a video from three years prior?
• Does it matter if Ms. Groves has changed over that period of time?
• Is the University of Tennessee righteous in rescinding Ms. Groves’s acceptance  to the university?
• Can we take this singular incident and codify it into a more generalized guide as to when people and acts should be canceled? If so, how?

This is one of the various essays that Professor Hetrick’s students read in preparation for a formal essay prompt on free speech and cancel culture. He points out that this reading would be particularly relevant for students who are responding to prompt #2. You can find the essay prompt options linked here.