San Francisco State University (SFSU) has found itself in the middle of another free speech controversy after blocking a scheduled event by the conservative nonprofit Turning Point USA (TPUSA). The event, titled “How Wokeness is Destroying America,” was to feature TPUSA contributor Jon Root as a speaker.
The move by SFSU comes in the wake of an incident earlier in April where former NCAA swimmer Riley Gaines was physically attacked and barricaded in a room for hours following protests over her scheduled speaking event on the SFSU campus about women’s sports and transgender athletes. Gaines’ event was also sponsored by the school’s chapter of TPUSA.
“It’s more than apparent SFSU condones violence, doesn’t uphold free speech, and is scared of perspectives that differ from their own,” Gaines tweeted about the incident. “They have now cancelled Jon’s [Turning Point USA] event with no reason why.”
Two days before the scheduled talk, SFSU revoked the room that had been booked for the event. The chapter’s president stated that the group had been warned in an email that the event should be understood to be unapproved by the administration if students attempted to host the discussion in person. The school’s Academic Affairs Office had also been advising professors with evening classes on the day of the talk to move online due to an “uncertain level of disruption.”
A spokesperson for the school reportedly informed TPUSA that accommodations would be made if the event occurred virtually. SFSU cited concerns about its capacity to safely hold a potential protest like the one seen during the Gaines speech as the reason for canceling the event’s reserved room.
“The school is assaulting free speech by revoking the room we booked [and] refuses to provide us a larger venue for my speech,” Root tweeted.
This latest incident comes as protests at American colleges and universities over free speech continue to escalate. A debate on Tuesday, April 18, at the University of Pittsburgh, titled “Should Transgenderism be Regulated by Law?” featuring conservative Daily Wire host Michael Knowles and libertarian journalist Brad Polumbo, saw hundreds of protesters, eventually leading to a “public safety emergency.” The university temporarily closed several buildings and suspended residence hall visits after an “incendiary device” was thrown at law enforcement officers on the scene.
“We were smoke bombed and yelled at,” Logan Dubil, a volunteer for the event, said. “It’s definitely a safety concern. I’m all for protesting and for the First Amendment, but you can’t get violent like that.”
These incidents, along with controversies such as Gaines’ assault and the interruption of a federal judge speaking at Stanford University, have all sparked further discussion over the free expression of speech at American colleges. The issue of free speech on college campuses remains a divisive one, with some arguing that certain views and speakers should be barred in order to create a safe and inclusive environment, while others maintain that all views should be allowed and that universities have a responsibility to protect free speech.
