Free Speech on College Campuses, Follow-Up

It happened again. A protest shut down a controversial campus speaker; in this case, Milo Yiannopoulos.

I, for one, have no use for Milo Yiannopoulos. His opinions are wrong. The protestors who object to his speech are, however, only giving him more publicity.

Bill of Rights, Nat'l Archives

The protestors should have more confidence in their fellow students. Let them listen and make up their own minds.

That I listen to someone's speech does not mean that I agree with that person. It only means that I want to be informed. Freedom does not mean that only the popular people get heard. Freedom of speech also protects views that are unpopular, and it even protects people who are evil. As Thomas Jefferson said in his First Inaugural Address, "error of opinion may be tolerated where reason is left free to combat it."

If you don't like what someone has to say, then don't attend the speech. Or, better, listen to the speech, and then give a better speech on the other side of the topic. Shutting the other speaker down is the path to anarchy and tyranny. 

See my first post about this topic.