More Academia Bullying

Students walk out of veteran’s speech to protest his use of term ‘radical Islam’ More than 100 students walked out on retired U.S. Army Lt. Colonel Allen West on Thursday as he began a speech at Saint Louis University to discuss the threat of radical Islam. Had the students stayed, they would have heard a speech on how radical Islamic terrorism has reached American shores, and how the U.S. government is obfuscating the issue, and in some cases apparently covering it up, calling terrorist attacks on U.S. soil workplace violence or other names. The students protesters — led by the SLU Rainbow Alliance and the Muslim Students’ Association — had arrived early and filled many of the seats in the two-story auditorium where West was slated to speak. As he took the stage they stood up and filed out. At issue is West’s use of the term “radical Islam” — also the subject of his speech. Last week an administrator at Saint Louis University told the conservative and Republican students organizing the talk that they were not allowed to use the words “radical Islam” on advertisements for the event, reported Young America’s Foundation, which sponsored the talk. In response, West wrote an article saying he had been “censored,” called modern college students who seek safe spaces “little cupcakes,” and added ... [full] SLU President Fred Pestello, fearing, I guess, an ugly demonstration, coddled students with an email saying he stood in “solidarity” with them, and called West a “provocateur.”  Provocateur? As opposed to "peacemaker, reconciler, uniter?  Neither definition fits.  The conservative organizers had every expectation that they would be allowed to hear free expression of ideas; this is a University, wot?  Still, the most troublesome aspect of this saga is that bullies like the Rainbow Alliance, and Muslim Students’ Association (as they are wont to do) acted to keep interested students from hearing the very speech they arranged. Using the the dreaded Hitler invocation; which group, the conservative hosts, or left activists, most resemble Brown Shirts?   That's right.