Milo Yiannopoulos, UC Davis

Summary

College Republicans at UC Davis invited controversial speakers Milo Yiannopoulos and Martin Shkreli to speak at an on-campus event in January 2017. A public letter signed by hundreds of UC Davis students and graduates in the lead-up to the event claimed that the event was a direct threat to minorities and demanded that it be canceled. Before the event began, protestors gathered outside of the venue holding signs and chanting “Say it loud, say it clear, racists are not welcome here.” Eventually, about 150 protestors completely blocked access to the lecture hall. After consulting with the university’s police department, the College Republicans cancelled the event thirty minutes before its scheduled start due to safety concerns. According to the university police spokesman, these safety concerns came from attempting to move increasingly antagonistic protestors in order to allow ticketed attendees entrance to the event. Although one person was arrested inside the venue, UC Davis issued a statement rebutting claims that the protests had been violent. The next day, Yiannopoulos returned to UC Davis with supporters and marched across the campus to show their disapproval of the protests and the cancellation of the event. It appears that beyond the single student arrested, no protestors were investigated or punished for their actions.