The University of California Berkeley’s student government is moving to prevent the College Republicans from hosting events on campus after an appearance by The Daily Wire’s Michael Knowles left students feeling “unsafe.”
The Berkeley College Republicans hosted Knowles on October 7th, advertising the event with posters referencing Knowles’ calls to eradicate transgender ideology. Critics falsely claimed Knowles was calling for the eradication of transgender people, an assertion echoed by UC Berkeley Chancellor Richard Lyons.
“I was dismayed by recent posters calling for the elimination of transgender people,” Lyons said in a video, citing Knowles’s alleged comments as an example of “rhetoric endorsing violence on our campus community.”
Now, Berkeley’s student government is set to consider a measure that could deny funding and event space to the College Republicans.
“Some ASUC Senators have taken it upon themselves to issue condemnations of our First Amendment-protected activities, and have vowed to attempt to ‘hold BCR accountable,’” an Instagram post from the group reads. “This comes after they have been gathering support for and drafting resolutions to BCR as a club on campus and prohibit conservative speakers on campus.”
The California College Republicans, the parent organization overseeing the Berkeley College Republicans, explained how some on the campus are working to shut down the club’s activities and deprive it of funding.
Two student government senators “will be proposing a resolution to prevent any student organization from reserving campus space or allowing speakers to come on campus if their activities promote hate speech or create an unsafe environment for any students,” the California College Republicans noted.
“With the conservative movement on campus stronger than it has ever been, it is no surprise that the radical left attempts to spread lies and contort our words to scare off dissent,” UC Berkeley College Republicans President and California College Republicans Chairman Martin Bertao said in response to the controversy.
A university spokesman attempted to distance the school from the student government’s measure when asked about it by The Daily Wire, explaining that the student government is “autonomous and independent from the university, but still obviously subject to the laws of the land.”
While Lyons and members of the student government have claimed the College Republicans are engaging in alleged hate speech, the club itself has been the target of calls to violence.
Members of the club found posters placed on campus that read “KILL DONALD TRUMP AND ALL CAMPUS REPUBLICANS.” The College Republicans note that they are prepared to explore legal avenues to defend their safety if needed.
