Universities mustn’t be places in which free speech is stifled

[busyboysmum]

www.thetimes.co.uk/edition/news/universities-ordered-to-guarantee-free-speech-wxzcr32hh?CMP=Sprkr--Editorial--TheTimesandTheSundayTimes--Education--Imageandlink--Statement--Unspecified-_-FBPAGE&linkId=43674738

One of the American universities wrote an excellent letter to students about this. I'll see if I can find it.

"I definitely think there should be free speech - but how will those who disagree be prevented from doing everything in their power to stop it?
I mean, at what point would they stopped from protesting so loudly that the speaker cannot be heard or from disrupting proceedings so the talk cannot take place?"

Presumably at the point just before the speaker is drowned out or the meeting is stopped?

I definitely think there should be free speech - but how will those who disagree be prevented from doing everything in their power to stop it?

Maybe that's hard to stop - but speech and protest is more valid than suppression of speech. It shows each side in truer colours, at least.

PencilsinSpace I think a lot of the 'anti-extremism' policies came into play after this report, although I could be wrong as I'm not involved in this area of students' unions.

Not to labour the point pisacake but there have been elected MPs in the British House of Commons since 1982/83. You may not approve of them but they are as legitimate a party as the DUP.

Public disorder laws apply, of course, to counter protesters too. And venues can set their own rules about behaviour, such as deliberately trying to stop a booked speaking being heard on stage. This isn't new stuff, this is how things used to be before universities (or, more usually, their student unions) started booking radicalisers as speakers and stopped rad fems having a voice.

Hmmm, promoting men and silencing women.... Familiar?

No Holy, it's still going on.

No-platforming isn't about 'anti-extremism' it's about shutting down opposing views. The hate preachers are not being no-platformed. Feminists are, and speakers who are critical of islamism.