Last night, at a Rutgers University sponsored event put on by Young Americans for Liberty, Milo Yiannopoulos spoke as a part of his “Dangerous Faggot Tour.” The topic of conversation was the defense of freedom of speech. What followed was an evening of explosive conflict, carried out by two polarized groups of students who practically split the room.
Milo Yiannopoulos is a gay conservative who has made a name for himself as an inflammatory, provocative fighter against “PC Culture,” feminists, and the black lives matter movement. He’s known for starting the hashtag #FeminismIsCancer on Twitter and for establishing the Privilege Grant: a scholarship awarded exclusively to white men pursuing higher education. At the event, he openly denied the existence of rape culture, the wage gap, and even stated he didn’t believe lesbians were “real,” and he drew comparisons between Black Lives Matter and the KKK.
What makes Yiannopoulos so popular amongst his supporters is the assertion that feminists and social activists are overstepping their bounds. The social justice movement, according to Yiannopoulos, has pushed a narrative that words can have a negative impact and therefore should be censored, but he argues instead that they are actually trying to force a specific ideology onto society by creating an environment that excludes certain thoughts and ideas. Throughout the event, audience members chanted “Trump Trump Trump…” and applauded raucously every time he derided the feminist and minority organizations on campus.
Protestors painted doors with fake blood, including one door saying “RU 4 Racism”
But when Yiannopoulos mentioned Black Lives Matter, the other half of the audience made themselves known. More than a few dozen students exploded in applause and cheers that were louder and went on longer than any of the Trump supporters up to that point. And a few minutes later, a group of women, mostly black, stood up in protest, painted their faces with fake blood, and stormed out of the lecture hall. They chanted “Black Lives Matter.” The others chanted “Trump Trump Trump.” One protester said afterwards she “came out really crying” because she “didn’t realize our country was really as bad as it is until this moment right now. I knew this stuff went on, but not that it went on at the ‘inclusive, diverse’ Rutgers.” Other students in the audience called the protest a “disgrace.”
At the heart of the hostility between these two groups was the question of what it means to have freedom of speech. The push from recent social justice movements to create a “safe space” in the educational environment comes from a long history of college campuses excluding anyone who isn’t white or male from contributing, and their ultimate goal is to be able to include everyone in any conversation. In the opinion of Young Americans for Liberty and other Yiannopoulos supporters attending the event, this is dangerous and suppresses any disagreement. One Trump supporter waiting outside said, “smooth seas don’t make good sailors,” meaning political ideas must be challenged by debate in order to prove their value.
Trump supporter shouts back at protestors
However, what groups like Young Americans for Liberty fail to recognize is that the social justice movement is more than happy to engage in conversations with people who disagree. What they aren’t happy with is paying $26,000+ in tuition for Rutgers to host a man who belittles victims of sexual assault and who demonizes the existence of women, lesbians, and people of color. “You don’t need to have a man come that has nothing to do with Rutgers University to spark a conversation. We are all adults. We are all educated. And we are all capable of creating a conversation ourselves. If their [Young Americans for Liberty] main goal was really to educate other people, I don’t think this is the best way to go about it” said student Egypt Pringley. The problem is when schools invite people like Milo Yiannopoulos, you’re inviting conflict. When you invite a well known internet troll who gets off on insulting everyone he came to disagree with, you’re not promoting freedom of speech, you’re promoting useless discord. “You don’t have to bring a problematic character. You’re bringing a problematic character because you want a problem.”
Samuel Shopp
Photo Creds: Gavin Meese