'A Battlefield of Ideas': Students Promote Civil Discourse Through Peer-Driven Magazine, Events

Duke is equipping students to respect differing viewpoints in a variety of ways. This Duke Today series examines the decline in civil discourse and Duke’s efforts to improve campus dialogue.

Here’s a novel idea in 2025:

You disagree with your friend’s political views. You could:

a) Cancel the friend on social media
b) End the friendship in real life
c) Start a magazine where classmates with opposing views share their essays to better understand each other

Duke juniors Zachary Partnoy (liberal) and Sherman Criner (conservative) chose option “c.”

They launched The Lemur in fall 2024, an online publication that bills itself as “Duke’s Big Ideas Magazine.”

Amazingly, they’re still friends.

“We probably agree more in a lot of areas … but we disagree on a lot of things, a lot of values-based things,” Criner says. “We were like, ‘We have interesting conversations. But these are the conversations that people on campus say aren‘t really that possible. So let‘s try and find a way to create a space for that.’ ”

Adds Partnoy: “We were really concerned that intellectual culture at Duke among undergrads was just not as like vibrant as it could be.”

The Lemur features a variety of writings on topics including Politics, Religion & Philosophy, History & Civilization, Dearest Duke and Art & Culture.

“It's basically a battlefield of ideas,” Criner says, adding that he’s even pitched writing opportunities to students while they demonstrate in response to the war in Gaza.

“I just don’t want bad writing on the website,” Partnoy says.

A recent contribution from first-year Greensboro native Anna Vannoy, political editor of The Lemur, examined negative portrayals of poor, white Southerners in literary and political culture. She connects her observations with why Democrats appear out of touch with much of America:

“The current political insularity of the Democrats – who too often repeat the errors of their culturally dominant constituency, which has a weakness for condescending to those who don’t share their educational privilege – has damaged the party’s popularity and, in turn, its power,” Vannoy writes.

“Democrats must stop condescending towards poor white Appalachians (among other groups) – perhaps some new voices in Southern literature can help them finally understand this demographic on its own terms.”

The Lemur also organized a post-election roundtable for students to share their views. Despite a few tense moments, Partnoy and Criner say it was worthwhile and engaging.

More recently they started holding book discussions, launching the inaugural Foundations series April 3 with a discussion of Edmund Burke’s “Reflections on the Revolution in France.”

The next event in the series is a discussion of Thomas Paine’s “Rights of Man” from 6-7:30 p.m. Monday, April 21, in Room 114 of The Gray Building. The Lemur will provide copies of the book and food from Panera. (For more info, email thelemurmagazine@gmail.com.)

Student-led initiatives

Duke’s administration has promoted a variety of courses, guest speakers and faculty training to help bolster a better understanding and respect of differing views across campus.

For example, Provost Alec Gallimore during the 2023-2024 school year launched the ongoing Provost’s Initiative on the Middle East speaker series, which brings a diverse mix of experts and practitioners who share their perspectives.

Gallimore also created a “Pluralism, Free Inquiry and Belonging” initiative last September to “cultivate a wide range of viewpoints and a deep desire to learn from one another’s perspectives rather than simply reiterating one’s own and automatically rejecting other views before understanding them.”

But Partnoy and Criner say the best approach comes from student-driven activities.

“We do admire what the administration is trying to do,” he adds. “But I think one of the things that has been successful about The Lemur is that there’s been a positive response to it among students, and the fact that it’s student-run. I just think that’s the reality for most students.”

Abdullah Antepli, professor of the practice at the Sanford School and director of Duke’s Civil Discourse Project and Polis: Center for Politics, agrees.

“The Lemur is an exemplary outcome of an ideal educational process,” Antepli says. “A group of Duke students were inspired through multiple Transformative Ideas classes they took and created this online platform that not only filled an existing void in the space beautifully, but continues to generate brilliant intellectual and moral inquiry for many members of the broader Duke family.”

“We at Polis and CDP are proud to support the effort and will continue to do so.”

Proceed with caution

Many students characterize their comfort in sharing personal views as a mixed bag. It largely depends on the environment at the time. Criner and Partnoy say students will sometimes remain silent out of fear that sharing personal views on hot topics could torpedo post-Duke careers.

Senior Iyesha Belgrave says a professor’s acceptance of differing viewpoints can also influence whether students express themselves.

“I’ve had experiences in college where I did not feel comfortable enough to share my views, because I've had professors say like, ‘This is my point of view, and if you don’t, if you disagree, that’s your problem,’” Belgrave says.

“But on the opposite spectrum, I have professors that say, ‘This is my point of view, but just because it’s my view doesn't mean it has to be your view. And I’d like to sit down and listen and see how you have these beliefs, what kind of led you to this point.”

Sharing your views can turn more intense among students, adds Belgrave.

“Amongst the students I surround myself with, I think we’re all pretty vocal about our beliefs, but I do know that there are a lot of students that don’t feel comfortable sharing their beliefs,” she says. “Not because they don’t believe in them 100% but sometimes it’s not always the safest campus environment.”

Fellow senior Chloe Decker, student chair of the nonpartisan student group Duke Votes, has been involved in helping students register to vote since her first year on campus.

She has observed growth in student engagement on voting and political issues since she came to Duke, “staying informed and discussing the myriad ways that politics can and does impact their lives,” she says.

“To fully engage in civil discourse, you can’t just have political scientists and economists in the room – you need folks from every walk of life to have the willingness and know-how to have a meaningful conversation about the way the world works,” Decker says.

“Civil discourse is not just something that is needed when discussing international conflicts, but it also applies when considering state and local policies that structure our daily lives.”