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After the president of California State University Los Angeles canceled a planned appearance by conservative speaker Ben Shapiro Tuesday, and Shapiro promised to show up anyway, the university announced it would allow him to speak and the talk went ahead as planned.
“My decision was made in the interest of safety and security,” Cal State’s president, William Covino, said in a statement Thursday, the day of the talk. “I am disappointed that Mr. Shapiro has not accepted my invitation to speak in such a forum … I strongly disagree with Mr. Shapiro’s views. But if Mr. Shapiro does appear, the university will allow him to speak. We will make every effort to ensure a climate of safety and security.”
Students protesting the event reportedly blocked an entrance to the student union where Shapiro was speaking, and video posted on Twitter shows a number of tense encounters.
