March 2020 Book Group 

The Coddling of the American Mind:

How Good Intentions and Bad Ideas Are Setting Up a Generation for Failure

by

Jonathan Haidt and Greg Lukianoff

The Coddling of the American Mind grew out of increased support for  college students seeking censorship for controversial opinions. The authors believe  this has resulted in “ a culture of “safetyism”, whereby students feel they must be protected from opposing opinions that threaten their emotional safety. The authors identify three “untruths” that have led to decisions on college campuses that have resulted in stifling free expression. They believe these decisions have hampered the students social, emotional and intellectual growth. The three “Untruths” are:

1) Fragility - what doesn’t kill you makes you weaker;

2) Emotional Reasoning - always trust your feelings; and

3) Us Versus Them - life is a battle between good people and evil people.

The book concludes with a plan for dispelling these “Untruths” resulting in wiser kids, wiser universities and wiser societies!