In recent years, a growing concern has emerged over the direction of higher education in America. Colleges that were once bastions of intellectual growth and critical thinking have shifted focus.
According to John Stossel, many institutions have moved from fostering debate and thought-provoking discussions to teaching students to feel like victims.
This shift is the focal point of Stossel’s recent video, in which he uses clips from the documentary The Coddling of the American Mind, based on the book by Greg Lukianoff and Jonathan Haidt, and provides his commentary on how students are being taught to embrace victimhood and censorship, and the negative impact this is having on their mental health and personal development.
A New Way of Thinking
Stossel’s video introduces the stories of students like Kimi Katiti and Lucy Kross, who experienced the transformation from confident young individuals to people weighed down by the concepts of microaggressions and privilege. Kimi, once full of self-assurance, saw her confidence crumble during her time at the Art Institute of California.
She was introduced to the concept of microaggressions, a phenomenon where even the most benign statements or actions are seen as forms of oppression. “I began to see myself through the lens of black and a woman,” she explains. This perspective, although presented as a form of empowerment, left her feeling anxious and, ultimately, miserable.
The Dangers of Microaggressions
The video delves into how microaggressions, a term used to describe subtle, often unintended offenses, have been weaponized to shape students’ worldview. Kimi reflects on how she started interpreting everyday interactions, like someone’s dog barking at her, as a form of racial microaggression. “I was like, the world’s a lot darker than I thought it was,” she says.
This constant vigilance for offense led her to view the world with a sense of distrust and fear, rather than the confidence she had once carried. According to Stossel, this shift is emblematic of the new approach many universities are taking – teaching students to view themselves as perpetual victims rather than individuals capable of overcoming challenges.
Lucy Kross: The Woke Language Trap
Similarly, Lucy Kross, a student at Stanford, was taught that conservative voices, like that of Ben Shapiro, were dangerous to minority students. “Ben Shapiro’s ideas put black, brown, trans, queer, and Muslim students at risk,” she was told. Initially skeptical, Lucy eventually conformed to the “woke” language that was pervasive on campus.
She began using terms like “marginalized,” “intersectional,” and “hegemonic,” not out of genuine belief, but because it made her more popular among her peers. “People just kind of smiled a little bit more,” she admits. This reliance on language to fit in highlights a disturbing trend in academia: students are rewarded for parroting ideologies rather than thinking critically or independently.
The Pressure to Conform
As Lucy’s story reveals, the pressure to conform to campus orthodoxy can be overwhelming. “I started feeling like I was part of an in-group,” she says, but this feeling of belonging came at the cost of her individuality. By using the right vocabulary and embracing the victim mentality, Lucy gained social acceptance.
However, as she continued down this path, she found herself growing increasingly miserable. “These sets of thought processes were really unhealthy,” Lucy concludes, pointing to the emotional toll of embracing a mindset that centers on oppression and victimhood.
The Impact of Censorship on Free Thought
One of the key themes explored in Stossel’s video is how censorship has become a tool for maintaining ideological control on college campuses. Students are often taught that certain opinions, particularly those from conservatives or individuals who do not adhere to the prevailing political ideology, are harmful and should be silenced.
Kimi Katiti, for instance, found herself part of the mob trying to get Ben Shapiro’s posts blocked on social media. She recalls staying up late sending complaints to Twitter’s censors in an attempt to remove content she deemed offensive. This kind of behavior, fueled by the idea that speech itself is dangerous, stifles free thought and limits intellectual diversity.
The Role of College Administrators
Stossel points out that administrators play a significant role in perpetuating the culture of victimhood on campus. He highlights how colleges teach students to view themselves as fragile beings in constant danger, susceptible to harm from words, ideas, and different perspectives.
According to Stossel, this approach not only harms students’ mental health but also undermines their ability to think critically and engage in constructive debate. In his view, “This is not a kind or compassionate thing to teach people.” Instead of preparing students to face the challenges of the real world, colleges are preparing them to be easily offended and unable to cope with adversity.
The Rise of Cancel Culture
Another alarming aspect of this trend is the rise of cancel culture on college campuses. Students are encouraged to report individuals who offend them, and entire groups of people are sometimes ostracized for expressing unpopular or controversial views.
Stossel refers to this as “the battle between good and evil” that often plays out on campuses, where students are divided into “oppressed” and “oppressor” categories. Rather than encouraging open discourse, universities are fostering an environment where students are more focused on policing each other’s language and ideas than engaging in meaningful dialogue.
The Mental Health Crisis
Stossel also connects the rise of victimhood culture to the increasing rates of anxiety and depression among students. By constantly being taught that they are under threat, students become more prone to feeling helpless and isolated. As Greg Lukianoff, co-author of The Coddling of the American Mind: How Good Intentions and Bad Ideas Are Setting Up a Generation for Failure, explains, this shift is akin to teaching students to catastrophize every situation, which can lead to mental health issues like depression and suicidal thoughts.
Lukianoff himself experienced suicidal depression years ago, and he recognizes the harmful impact that this new culture is having on students today. “It’s kind of like administrators are telling students to catastrophize,” he says.
Saeed Malami: The Cost of Speaking Out
The video also highlights how students who challenge the prevailing narrative often face social ostracism. Saeed Malami, a student who spoke at a protest, was shunned by his peers for expressing views that deviated from the accepted ideology. “A lot of people I thought I was tight with just stopped talking to me,” he says.
This fear of speaking out and challenging the status quo is a direct consequence of the culture of censorship and victimhood that has taken root on many college campuses. Students like Malami learn to keep their true thoughts to themselves, further stifling intellectual diversity and critical thinking.
Kimi’s Realization: Breaking Free from the Victim Mindset
For Kimi Katiti, a turning point came when she visited a skatepark in a conservative neighborhood in Orange County, California. Initially fearful that the locals would react negatively to her presence, Kimi was surprised to find the community welcoming and inclusive.
This experience made her realize that the worldview she had adopted in college—one that saw the world as a place full of danger and hostility – was flawed. “I was the one inflicting pain on myself,” she admits. This moment of clarity marked the beginning of her journey toward reclaiming her confidence and rejecting the victimhood mindset that had taken over her life.
The Importance of Independent Thinking
Stossel concludes that the key to breaking free from the victimhood culture is independent thinking. He encourages students to seek out alternative perspectives and question the ideas they are taught. For Kimi, the turning point was discovering that there were black scholars discussing race in ways she had never encountered on campus.
This exposure to different ideas helped her see that her previous understanding of the world was limited and distorted. “This whole new world of ideas has opened up to me,” she says, reflecting on how liberating it was to start thinking for herself again.
A Call for Change
Stossel’s video serves as a powerful critique of the direction that many colleges have taken in recent years. By prioritizing victimhood, censorship, and emotional fragility, these institutions are doing a disservice to their students. Instead of preparing young people for the complexities of the real world, colleges are preparing them to view themselves as helpless victims.
The video’s message is clear: students need to be taught to think critically, engage with diverse perspectives, and confront challenges head-on, not hide behind a shield of victimhood. Only then will they be prepared to navigate the world as confident, independent thinkers.
Raised in a small Arizona town, Kevin grew up surrounded by rugged desert landscapes and a family of hunters. His background in competitive shooting and firearms training has made him an authority on self-defense and gun safety. A certified firearms instructor, Kevin teaches others how to properly handle and maintain their weapons, whether for hunting, home defense, or survival situations. His writing focuses on responsible gun ownership, marksmanship, and the role of firearms in personal preparedness.
