Forgiveness of existing loans (tens of thousands of dollars that can't be discharged in bankruptcy is not a fair cost for much of anything in this life and if you think it is then, yes, you're part of the problem). University tuition should continue to be heavily subsidized in a less boondoggle-ish way (or just capped in some way for state schools) but making it completely free is not feasible given what Americans expect of their schools culturally.
Mass debt forgiveness sounds good, but is effectively a massive subsidy for the upper middle and soon to be upper middle class. Let's not forget that on average a college graduate will have an ample wage premium over a high school diploma holder.
Problematic student debt is concentrated among a few key groups:
1) Students in for-profit schools
2) Dropouts
3) Students with many years of education (grad school, changing programs, etc.)
Any debt forgiveness should be concentrated among those people. It is personally reasonable to ask people who are obtaining an education that will profit them immensely to contribute towards it if they are able.
You raise an interesting point around bankruptcy, but unfortunately there is no collateral like other loans. If a don't pay my mortgage or car note, the bank can seize the asset. There is nothing to seize in an education loan, so making them discharged in bankruptcy makes them like any other unsecured loan to an 18 year old with no income; there will be a cost either via higher rejection rates, higher interest rates, or the state subsidizing a massive moral hazard.
The solution IMO, is for the state to do its best to make state schools affordable, both through administration/amenities cuts and increased grants to students, while making loans discharged in bankruptcy. This would allow more students to self-finance, while keeping the 'cost' I described above reasonable.
