After Clashes At UC Berkeley, Conservative Speaker Ben Shapiro Invited To Campus
BERKELEY (KCBS) – After the appearances of two conservative speakers were canceled at the University of California, Berkeley this year, the Berkeley College Republicans are hoping to host conservative columnist Ben Shapiro this September.
In February, the campus canceled former Breitbart editor Milo Yiannopoulous's talk when protests turned violent. Two months later, pundit Ann Coulter was turned away because the campus said it could not guarantee her safety.
Shapiro is slated to speak at Cal on September 14th, invited by the Berkeley College Republicans and the Young America's Foundation to "bring ideological diversity."
UC Berkeley spokesperson Dan Mogulof says he's welcome.
"No, we're not going to back down on our commitment to the First Amendment," Mogulof said. "We're not going to back down on our commitment to enable student groups to invite of whoever see fit. But we have to do that with open eyes about the context we exist in right now."
Cal is being sued over the canceled Coulter event with student groups claiming a violation of free speech.
