Boston College must establish a forum for open debate. 

In recent weeks, following the killing of Charlie Kirk, I have seen numerous articles and op-eds deriding the lack of free and open discourse on our campus, and their concerns have merit.

Boston College’s now infamous speech climate grade of “F” by the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE) for 2025 ought to speak plainly enough. Of the 257 schools examined for free speech tolerance, only six fell behind BC. Based on FIRE’s criteria, administrative support for free expression and student self-censorship are the main culprits for such a rating. 

The problem of administrative support at BC is clear. When it takes three months to approve a protest, and when clubs are subject to overly strenuous approval processes—a problem I have experienced myself—freedom of speech cannot prosper.

Self-censorship is equally damning. Fifty-eight percent of BC students report the need to refrain from expressing their views in public for fear of retribution. 

If this university shows such antipathy toward unrestricted discourse, perhaps it possesses some wisdom that I do not. Perhaps debate is not crucial for society, and we should carefully censor the opinions that are shared instead.

We find a clear refutation in John Stuart Mill’s “On Liberty.”

“But the peculiar evil of silencing the expression of an opinion is, that it is robbing the human race; posterity as well as the existing generation; those who dissent from the opinion, still more than those who hold it,” Mill wrote. “If the opinion is right, they are deprived of the opportunity of exchanging error for truth: if wrong, they lose, what is almost as great a benefit, the clearer perception and livelier impression of truth, produced by its collision with error.”

The Church itself speaks equally plain in the 1971 Synod of Bishops piece titled “Justice in the World.”

“The Church recognizes everyone’s right to suitable freedom of expression and thought,” the bishops wrote. “This includes the right of everyone to be heard in a spirit of dialogue which preserves a legitimate diversity within the Church.”

What can we do to live and act in light of these abiding words? Many have pointed to our lack of discourse, but none have provided a solution. I propose the establishment of a student debating forum named the “Gasson Society.”

This society is distinct from a competitive debate team, which already exists at BC and most American universities. I instead wish to model our new organization on the European society style. 

While abroad at Trinity College in Dublin, I attended a debate held by the Historical Society, the world’s oldest student debate organization. Debates were open to the public and widely attended, each based on the proposition “This house believes….”

Students and guest speakers spoke in favor or opposition with a manner of respect and dignity that is rarely observed in this country. Audience participation was welcome, and the motions themselves ranged from pressing political issues to entertaining cultural questions. The students alone chose the motion, as well as the guest speaker.

Oxford and Cambridge each have similar unions, and I implore readers to watch the debate between William F. Buckley and James Baldwin at the Cambridge Union.

As an elite Jesuit university, we have the opportunity to be a leader in open discourse. Without the confines of political affiliation, the Gasson Society will have the ability to expose the BC community to vigorous and formal debate.

Speakers from across the ideological spectrum will be welcome to participate. We may learn from the veracity of their statements or the falsehood of their opinions. It will be the cradle of political expression at this university. 

I hope that many of my fellow students share my urgency for this project. It will be difficult, given the aforementioned administrative processes, to create this organization with any speed. Nevertheless, I have a passionate belief that with enough student and faculty participation, we can move the slow wheels of bureaucracy.

I invite interested students to fill out the attached interest form and let their voice be heard. May the Gasson Society become an enduring tradition of free discourse at this university. 

Interest Form Link