The increasing influence of postmodern ideologies on college campuses is leading to a fall in intellectualism among faculty and students. I’m starting to see a surge of this politicized version of postmodernism amongst the political groups at NYU. People refuse to debate the other side but instead shut off ideas because the ideas are seen as a security risk, identity politics or even self-censorship due to political correctness. Sometimes people call out these postmodernists with the term “Social Justice Warriors.” But while this term is often used as a meme or a joke, postmodern philosophy is no laughing matter.

Postmodernists reject these concepts because they believe Western society is phallogocentric; as they believe such concepts are fallacious social constructs used to perpetuate the Western patriarchal society. Why do you think it is so hard for two opposite groups to talk out their opposing views while having easy prejudicial assumptions of one another? It’s not surprising that words like Fascist-Nazi bigot or Hippie commie scum are not helping.

As postmodernists do not believe in criticism, they don’t even believe in critical thinking. Since every narrative is as good as any other narrative there’s no point in debates or even a simple conversation. To them, the only way to win a political battle is to have the better narrative, even if it is a narrative that’s not supported by facts or logic. This lack of ideological malleability is the reason that certain people have not been allowed to speak on some college campuses — especially people who do not follow the appropriate narrative. This happens not only because postmodernists do not agree, but because they do not even believe in them speaking out. As a result, guest-speakers are being disinvited from college campuses including NYU. There have been violent riots in Berkeley by “antifa” and Bias Response teams.

Postmodernism is regressive — not progressive. As is political correctness for shutting down ideas, no matter how much those ideas conflict with our own.

How many of you have silenced yourselves — student or professor — out of fear that someone might label you as a racist, sexist, bigot, homophobe or transphobe, just because you have opposing, controversial or conservative points of view? No wonder NYU is at one of the lowest ends when it comes to political diversity. If we wish to progress, we must stop being the tools of our own ideologues and narratives and evolve our community of students and professors through a mutual intellectual understanding that can only start by doing one simple thing: Sit down and talk.

Opinions expressed on the editorial pages are not necessarily those of WSN, and our publication of opinions is not an endorsement of them. Email Mert Erenel at [email protected].