The National Security State

Abstract

The current political climate and the upcoming election provide us with both short-term opportunities for critical activism and long-term encouragement to rethink higher education’s role in preparing citizens for participation in a democracy. This is a rare, if brief, opportunity for academics to encourage participation in the political process by writing and speaking. We face real risks of an emerging national security state limiting our freedom of speech and access to education. Long term, we must recognize our failure to produce a critical mass of graduates ready to engage public policy in a reflective and independent fashion. In large measure, education has failed the country. We need to reevaluate our mission and the undergraduate curriculum.