Former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg was booed during a commencement address when he criticized college “safe spaces.”

Bloomberg said during the commencement address at the University of Michigan on Saturday that “keeping an open mind to new ideas is essential to your professional success — just as it’s crucial to our collective future as a Democratic society.”

{mosads}”The fact that some university boards and administrations now bow to pressure and shield students from these ideas through safe spaces, code words and trigger warnings is, in my view, a terrible mistake,” he said.

“The whole purpose of college is to learn how to deal with difficult situations — not run away from them. A microaggression is exactly that: micro. And one of the most dangerous places on a college campus is a safe space, because it creates the false impression that we can insulate ourselves from those who hold different views.”

During the speech, Bloomberg also said that working with others is the most important skill university students can learn.

He also talked about the 2016 presidential race, saying, “we’ve seen more demagoguery from both parties than I can remember in my lifetime” during the current campaign.

“Our country is facing serious and difficult challenges. But rather than offering realistic solutions, candidates in both parties are blaming our problems on easy targets who breed resentment,” he said.

“If we want to stop demagogues, we have to start governing again, and that requires us to be more civil, to support politicians who have the courage to take risks, and to reward those who reach across the aisle in search of compromise.”