Identity of Speakers
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Mike Pence
Unaffiliated
Invited for non-academic lectureMike Pence is the former Vice-President of the United States
Resources
Additional Information
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Incident Nature:
Student publication
University-sponsored lecture/address/panel
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Incident Political Orientation:
Right wing -
Incident Responses:
Rally or Protests
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Incident Status:
No litigation
- Did not involve Speech Codes
Summary
As part of a national speaking tour sponsored by the Young America’s Foundation, Mike Pence was scheduled to give an address at the University of Virginia on April 12, 2022. At earlier stops, he had praised the Trump administration’s achievements and decried the “all-encompassing assault on culture and values” by the “woke left.” On March 17, the student newspaper ran an editorial arguing that Pence should not be given at a platform to speak at UVA, citing his “transphobia, homophobia and racism” that “threatens the well-being and safety of students.” The editorial sparked a backlash, including a letter penned by a group of faculty criticizing the editorial for equating speech with violence that was published in the paper.
