We have been discussing the alarming rollback on free speech on United States campuses with the active or passive support of university and college administrators (with the exception of schools like University of Chicago). Students now treat free speech as itself a threat and seek to prevent other students from hearing from speakers with whom they disagree. The latest such example is at Claremont McKenna College where students succeeded in preventing other students from hearing from Heather MacDonald due to her pro-police views.
MacDonald is the author of the book The War on Cops and was faced with protesters blocking the doors to her speech. She said that she was forced to speak to a largely empty hall by live streaming because people were unable to come into the Atheneum. She said that the podium was even moved to prevent protesters from seeing her through the windows. Nevertheless, protesters pounded on the windows and screamed to drown out her words.
We had a similar situation when I recently debated John Yoo, who regularly draws protesters due to his key role in the “torture memos.” However, GW made clear that we believe in free speech and would not allow protesters to disrupt the event. Protesters were removed from the building and two protesters were later removed from the audience for interrupting Yoo. Protesters then yelled next to the windows to drown out Yoo. They were moved back from the windows to allow the debate to proceed unimpeded. The debate was able to occur in a civil and open forum.
In this case, protesters organized with the goal of stopping others from hearing from MacDonald with cites like “Shut Down Anti-Black Fascist Heather Mac Donald.” These protesters are the antithesis of the academic mission. They speak not to protest speakers but silence speech. It is the responsibility of the school to keep access to forums open and to prevent protesters from drowning out speakers by banging on the windows. I have no problem with protesters who are themselves exercising free speech. However, they have no right to prevent speech of others.
No comment.
Let’s see: Free College, Free Safe Space, Free Healthcare, Free Food Stamps. Free Speech, ah only if your a socialist!
Want to quiet them down bring back the draft, half these people don’t belong in university. They have no respect or appreciation for this great country or the constitution.
Free to those who partake means it costs them nothing. Unfortunately, someone has to pay. Too many do not value these “gifts” — just as they do not value others. I am so tired of these prima donnas.
Hail Hitler !!
The defense of civility is much more important to a free society than any specific cause. These young protestors need to be taught a lesson….zealotry is not really compatible with the mission of the university as a place where ideas are created and weighed. The question is, where are the university leaders who will fight to defend civility?
Completely agree. The idea of civility and basic good manners is entirely lacking. Do the administrators concur with these outrageous behaviors or are they afraid of the students?
Now, what about free speech. It seems that the protestors have the right by some Constitution or something to express themselves.
issac – maybe we should start treating protesters as predators and cull them. The gene pool would be better for it.
I am thinking 1 month exchange program with the University of Kim Jong-un in North Korea.
I would personally donate to that grant program. ( :
And what of Ms. MacDonald’s rights to free speech? Perhaps in your view,, her ‘rights’ are a little less equal as her opinion doesn’t agree with yours?
Issac, you’re correct that the protesters have rights of free speech. In fact, they had the entirety of the campus on which to exercise their rights, in fact, they could have gone virtually anywhere in the region to exercise their rights. These thugs were not exercising their rights to speak freely. They went to the one place in the world that Ms. MacDonald was speaking that day and did what they could to deny her rights of free speech.
Libruls! Libruls! Libruls!
Where is this so called “college”? Someone needs to fly over and flush.
Here is an appropriate song* for this thread:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CprpyqfCgsw
Squeeky Fromm
Girl Reporter
*Plus, it is a really beautiful piece!
agreed – thanks for posting
I am glad you liked it! I heard it on the Pandora New Age genre station which I go to sleep to sometimes. I find it soothes the cats, too, and they don’t fight sleep as much. Shakamuni is also a good song. But the title was not topical. I bought both of these on Amazon, but you can find them for free on youtube:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cQJwvyPOfb0
And here is the “official version” which I like less than the one he did with Anael, but has great visuals:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nAW-11zM9lM
Listening to stuff like this is how I stay sooo mellow.
Squeeky Fromm
Girl Reporter
Claremont McKenna has two mascots: a stag and Athena. “Athena, also referred to as Athene, is a very important goddess of many things. She is goddess of wisdom, courage, inspiration, civilization, law and justice, strategic warfare, mathematics, strength, strategy, the arts, crafts, and skill.
She is known most specifically for her strategic skill in warfare and is often portrayed as companion of heroes and is the patron goddess of heroic endeavour.”
Maybe they should replace her with Trigglypuff? =)
Why not just form a collective of all except Chicago, Grove and Hillsdale and name it Snow Flake U. I see the differences between international and national socialism are still few and far between.
These protesters are the antithesis of the academic mission. They speak not to protest speakers but silence speech. It is the responsibility of the school to keep access to forums open and to prevent protesters from drowning out speakers by banging on the windows. I have no problem with protesters who are themselves exercising free speech. However, they have no right to prevent speech of others.
The protesters are implementing institutional policy, which is why nothing is done. The trustees need to lease some power-wash equipment and clear the cr** out of the administration, which the trustees will never do (because they are, by and large, hollow men).
You are exactly right!
Squeeky Fromm
Girl Reporter
It is one thing to peaceful protest it is another to stop someone from speaking. Freedom of soeadh rewuires us to defend soeadh even if it speach with which we disagree. Obviously these “students” don’t want to be challlenged. They just want to silence other voices.
They don’t know what they want. They are not even students…they are babies.
Arresting the disruptors for disorderly conduct might help the situation.
A day in the county jail or a $125 fine followed by a semester’s suspension might get their attention. Of course, that would require lawyers and academic administrators do their jobs and actually punish these insufferable snot-noses. That won’t happen. Punishment is for wage-earner’s children, not for children of our friends who are due in law school in a few years.
Absolutely. And if I was paying for a college education for one of these little “protestors”, they would be jerked out of school the very next day. Personal belongings put on the street including their teddy bear, playdough and removed from The Will until they showed some CIVILITY. These kids are morons raised by idiotic selfish parents who think that they have produced children who have dodo that doesn’t stink.
Keep in mind that a lot of these protests are instigated and staged by non-campus anarchist groups such as ANTIFA. They will be be long gone by the time campus police get around to arresting anyone, if they haven’t started a riot first. The naive, gullible students usually end up paying the price.
Non ci credo.
Median age of Antifa is 23.College campuses are the incubators for totalitarianism and antifa groups.College administrators are signaling their blessing to attack political opposition. That’s why the police ignore the beatings and attacks. Leftists are signaling to students that they won’t be prosecuted when they attack conservatives.Dangerous times.