Karrin Taylor Robson, opinion contributor Published 6:00 a.m. MT Sept. 22, 2019

Opinion: Too many young people think free speech means silencing others. Here's what Arizona is doing to combat that.

The "free speech zone" was empty as people filed into Ferguson Auditorium to hear Bree Newsome, an activist and public speaker, at A-B Tech September 29, 2017.(Photo: Angela Wilhelm, /awilhelm@citizen-times.com)

Free speech zones. Speakers shouted down. Safe spaces. Trigger warnings.

Sometimes it feels like what needs protection most on a college campus is the First Amendment itself.

Consider these incidents that paint a picture of a disturbing national trend:

The incidents are a troubling manifestation of sentiment reflected in recent polling: Far too many young Americans view the First Amendment with uncertainty, if not antipathy.

In 2018, the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE) and YouGov surveyed college students nationwide on matters of free expression. Fully 96%of those polled say its important that their civil liberties be protected, and a plurality cite free speech as most essential.

Butwhat constitutes acceptable free expression? A majority of students, 57%, believe universities should be able to restrict speech that offends someone. Sixty percent of students say promoting an inclusive environment that is welcoming to a diverse group of students is more important than protecting free speech.

And 70% of those polled argue universities should exclude students from extracurricular activities if they express intolerant, hurtful or offensive viewpoints.

Separately, a 2017 survey of student attitudes by the Knight Foundation and Gallup found 37% of college students believe its acceptable to shout down a speaker, and one in 10 agree with using violence to stop a speech or rally they oppose.

Clearly, we have a problem.

President Trump's executive order on free speech on college campuses is in response to concerns from conservatives that colleges are too liberal. USA TODAY

Unfettered expression is fundamental to the American experience and appropriately enshrined in the Constitution as our nations first freedom. In a university context, free speech is fundamental to the learning process and the creation of knowledge; without free speech our ability to test our own ideas and assumptions is impossible.

In a civil society we solve our problems with words, not violence.Open and civil debate acts as a pressure release valve and without it, there is only physical confrontation.

Thats dangerous.

If respect for the First Amendment is ailing, our nations public universities must be part of the cure.

Arizona State University, Northern Arizona University and the University of Arizona are already among the nations leaders in protecting speech on campus. While state law bars public universities from herding demonstrators into the tiny so-called campus free speech zones common in other states, legislation signed into law in 2018 by Gov. Doug Ducey codifies the efforts of the board and universities to ensure free speech on campus.

Among its provisions, the law requires any campus restrictions on speech to be content neutral, and enables administrators to punish students who employ shout-downs and similar tactics to interfere with the speaking rights of others. This law underscores the commitment our universities have long held to ensure the fullest degree of intellectual freedom and free expression on our campuses.

For their pro-liberty policies, each of our public universities has been awarded by the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education a green light its highest rating and an honor granted to fewer than 50 institutions in the country.

It is in this same spirit that the Arizona Regents' Cup was created. During the inaugural competition this November, teams of students from each of our states public universities will gather at the University of Arizona in Tucson to engage in a series of intellectual competitions culminating in an Oxford-style debate.

I envisioned this event as a celebration of free speech, civil discourse and democratic engagement, as well as a showcase of our public universities commitment to these bedrock principles.

Judges will include leading figures from government, industry and academia, and participating students will earn course credit while competing for $100,000 in scholarship awards, generously contributed by private donors.

For this first-of-its-kind competition, the student debaters will consider a timely topic: How best to balance freedom of expression with the needs of a diverse, inclusive and welcoming society.

As Gov. DougDucey said in his 2018 State of the State address: Here in Arizona, on our campuses, debate is encouraged, free speech is protected, and diversity of thought isnt just a platitude. Its alive and well in lecture halls, on debate stages, and in the pages of college newspapers.

Our nations young people are recommitting to the ideals of free expression at Arizonas public universities. May the Regents Cup become a shining example of civil debate at a time when our country desperately needs it.

And may the best team win.

Karrin Taylor Robsonis a member of the Arizona Board of Regents, attorney and business leader. She is the founder and president of Arizona Strategies, a land use strategy firm in Phoenix.

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College students say they respect the First Amendment, but do they know what that means? - AZCentral