The University of British Columbia canceled a scheduled guest lecture by journalist Andy Ngo on Antifa violence after members of Antifa made violent threats against the event.
According to a report by The Post Millennial, the University of British Columbia has canceled an event featuring journalist Andy Ngo after members of the left-wing militant group Antifa allegedly made threats against the event.
The event, which was ironically meant to focus on the topic of Antifa violence, was scheduled to take place on January 29 at the University of British Columbia’s campus in Vancouver.
Lawyer Marty Moore sent a letter to University of British Columbia President Santa Ono, accusing the administration of caving to the heckler’s veto.
“It is an alarming betrayal of the foundational pillar of higher education — the freedom of thought, belief, opinion and expression. Furthermore, it signals automatic acquiescence to the ‘heckler’s veto,’ which will embolden threats from those who oppose the very notion of free expression,” Moore wrote in the letter.
British Columbia Civil Liberties Association Staff Counsel Latoya Farrell told the Vancouver Sun that it can be difficult for even free speech advocates to let an event proceed when threats of violence have been made.
“That’s always tough when you’re balancing free speech with safety. The problem on a university campus is that imposing burdens and obstacles like cancelling events based on anticipated hostility kind of empowers suppression of controversial speech,” Farrell said in a short comment.
Ngo is not a stranger to Antifa violence. Breitbart News reported in June 2019 that Ngo had been assaulted by Antifa protesters during a rally in Portland. In videos taken during the rally, Ngo was punched and kicked by masked Antifa members.
Stay tuned to Breitbart News for more updates on this story.