Suppression of Free Speech

For John, BLUF:  I see this as a particular failure of higher education, where the Professors and the Administrators should know better.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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We’re All Fascists Now

From The Old Gray Lady by Writer Bari Weiss, 7 March 2018.  Mr Weiss (@bariweiss) is a staff editor and writer for the Opinion section of the paper.

Here is the lede plus three:

Christina Hoff Sommers is a self-identified feminist and registered Democrat with a Ph.D. in philosophy and a wicked sense of humor.  She is also a woman who says bad things.  Things like:  Men and women are equal, but there are differences between them.  Or:  The gender gap in STEM fields isn’t simply the result of sexism.  Or:  Contrary to received wisdom, the American school system actually favors girls, not boys.

When such a person steps foot on a college campus these days, you know what’s coming.  So it was on Monday at Lewis & Clark Law School in Portland, Ore., where Ms. Sommers had been invited by the Federalist Society to give a talk about feminism.

In advance of the lecture, nine student groups, among them the Portland National Lawyers Guild, the Minority Law Student Association, the Women’s Law Caucus, the Jewish Law Society and the school’s Young Democratic Socialists of America chapter sent a letter protesting the appearance by this “known fascist.”

The letter added that her invitation amounted to an “act of aggression and violence” and went on to offer a curious definition of free speech:  “Freedom of speech is certainly an important tenet to a free, healthy society, but that freedom stops when it has a negative and violent impact on other individuals.”

Soon we will all be fascists and the Progressives will consume themselves.

I am glad to see the media, in this case The New York Times, wake up to the dangers to our precious freedoms, especially those incorporated in the First Amendment.  The paper seems to be woke to the idea that when people start restricting one First Amendment freedom the others will tumble into the abyss in turn.

Hat tip to the InstaPundit.

Regards  —  Cliff
-, Wed 0.0