I might be taking that quote out of context (and if so I apologize).
Many many students will only ever get “just an undergraduate degree”. Given the cost to obtain that degree - that has increased substantially over the decades - the focus is on how that degree is going to get leveraged occupationally and less about curiosity and exploration.
Many of the programs listed for consolidation might be great as minor’s/certificates but the occupational opportunities within many of them are severely limited.
Schools can/should continually look at enrollment in programs and add new programs where there is interest and discontinue programs where enrollment is declining. My guess is Social Justice Studies was a new program within the last 20 years. If there’s a suggestion that a school is shutting down a program due to outside societal pressure, even though there’s substantial enrollment, I would agree that is a significant problem.