Wednesday, July 12, 2017

After Milo and Ann, How Will UC Berkeley Respond?

From the SF Chronicle:
Conservative columnist Ben Shapiro — whose pro-Israel musings have pleased the right and angered the left has accepted an invitation to speak at UC Berkeley on Sept. 14, student groups announced Tuesday.
The key part of the article:
The Berkeley College Republicans and the conservative Young America’s Foundation — whose efforts to promote conservative speakers on campuses have accelerated since last year’s election of President Trump — have sued the University of California in federal court over Coulter’s canceled speech...

Shapiro and the Young America’s Foundation sued Cal State Los Angeles in 2016 when campus officials barred Shapiro from speaking on that campus. Shapiro and the group dropped the suit this year after California State University changed its policies to welcome a broader range of speakers.
It's pretty bad when you have to sue public universities in order to be allowed to speak at them.

Update, 7/20/17:  I say this for them, at least they're consistent:
On Wednesday, Young America’s Foundation and the Berkeley College Republicans were told by the University of California, Berkeley administration that Berkeley would not facilitate an event by Daily Wire editor-in-chief Ben Shapiro on September 14 on campus. Instead, administrators have informed YAF and BCR that they are “unable to identify an available campus venue.” They have not provided a list of other events taking place on campus on that time and date that would prevent Shapiro from speaking.

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