Oxford University has just issued its latest guidance which says that students who don't make eye contact when talking to others are racists. This has sparked controversy with critics accusing the university as completely plunging into leftist delusion.
The guideline was issued by Oxford's Equality and Diversity Unit which classified other behaviors like not talking to other students and asking someone where they came from as types of racism. The guideline went even as far as saying that these types of micro-aggressions can even lead to mental ill health.
This is not the first time Oxford issued a guideline that seems to overstep the boundaries because it dictates students what they should think and feel. Last year, the university's law students were told that they can skip lectures if they find the topics distressing.
Dr. Joanna Williams, a lecturer of higher education at the University of Kent, said that by issuing such guidelines, the university is accusing people of committing a thought crime based on an incorrect assumption.
She also added that these force people to look at each other as a person of color as well as place them into stereotypical boxes. Because of this, people cannot relate to each other naturally and spontaneously as their conversations will be laden with making sure that they follow all these guidelines.
Other critics accuse Oxford of feeding the egos of the snowflake generation, which Collin Dictionary defined in 2016 as the generation who are more prone to take offense and are less resilient than those generations before them.
Oxford's Equality and Diversity Unit defended itself saying that they are trying to create an atmosphere that is free from discrimination but filled with equal opportunity.
Meanwhile, it seems like other universities are following after Oxford. Earlier this year, Cardiff Metropolitan University stopped using gender specific terms in their vocabulary. The University of Glasgow, on the other hand, issued trigger warnings to theology students who are studying the crucifixion of Jesus.
