Citing ‘the likelihood of disruption and violence,’ Penn State President Eric Barron on Tuesday said the university has denied a request for white supremacist Richard Spencer to speak at University Park this fall.
Spencer is president of the white supremacist think tank National Policy Institute and is a leading figure among the so-called ‘alt-right,’ which advocates for white nationalism.
Penn State’s decision comes a little more than a week after upheaval in another university town, Charlottesville, Va., where a white supremacist rally led to violence and the death of a counter-protestor when an alleged white supremacist drove a car into a crowd of people.
Spencer was among the speakers in Charlottesville the weekend of Aug. 12-14 and had led a protest on the campus in May. Both rallies were ostensibly in protest of the removal of a statue of Confederate general Robert E. Lee.
‘After critical assessment by campus police, in consultation with state and federal law enforcement officials, we have determined that Mr. Spencer is not welcome on our campus, as this event at this time presents a major security risk to students, faculty, staff and visitors to campus,’ Barron said in a statement. ‘It is the likelihood of disruption and violence, not the content, however odious, that drives our decision.’
Barron also condemned bigotry and racism in the statement.
‘I disagree profoundly with the content that has been presented publicly about this speaker’s views which are abhorrent and contradictory to our University’s values,’ Barron said. ‘There is no place for hatred, bigotry or racism in our society and on our campuses.’
Recalling remarks made last week in the wake of the violence and hatred on display in Charlottesville, Barron said the university is committed to freedom of speech and encouraging its expression.
‘But the First Amendment does not require our university to risk imminent violence.’
Penn State is not the only university in recent days to turn Spencer away. He was scheduled to speak at a white nationalist rally at Texas A&M on Sept. 11, but that event was canceled by the university, which also cited safety concerns as the reason.
The National Policy Institute made a request for Spencer to speak on Sept. 12 at the University of Florida, but president W. Kent Fuchs announced last week that request was denied ‘amid serious concerns for safety.’
