Lines in the Sand
Has Course Hero crossed yours yet?
Many of us have been imploring people to wake up to the dangers of Course Hero. We have told you, repeatedly, about how Course Hero exploits students, our most marginalized and vulnerable students. Many of you have chosen to continue to partner with them in a variety of capacities.
My sense is that some people feel that the potential for good outweighs the harms that are being done. I wonder if you’ll feel the same after reading this.
I invite you to spend some time today searching their “learning resources.” Search for “my abortion.” There, you will find countless student essays telling their abortion stories. Many (most?) of these essays include multiple identifying details.
I of course celebrate people who choose to tell their abortion stories and to reduce the stigma around abortions, but I recognize that agency is complicated when a multi-billion dollar company is trading free “unlocks” to students who post their content on Course Hero.
I don’t know exactly how Course Hero is using the massive amount of data at their disposal, but I do know that women’s lives and pregnant people’s lives are at stake. I know that if I can find this information in less than five seconds, the people who are hunting those who seek abortions can too.
Does the good still outweigh the bad for you?
