Student fees shouldn’t go toward hateful speakers

When a liberal speaker comes to UF, there’s conservative outcry. “How come we never get any conservative speakers?” they say. They claim to be suffocated by safe spaces, when their safety was never actually threatened. Yet when there’s opposition to a conservative speaker, those on the other side of the political spectrum are called snowflakes and crybabies.

In what seems like an attempt to cover its a-- over complaints, Accent Speakers Bureau invited Ben Shapiro, the former editor-at-large of Breitbart, to speak today. While fake news might seem like something President Donald Trump came up with, Shapiro was spewing it years ago. He perpetuated the idea that a group named “Friends of Hamas” was contributing to Chuck Hagel’s campaign. In a 2007 article he wrote, “The Palestinian Arab population breeds terrorism, anti-Semitism and anti-Americanism.” It’s insensitive to invite someone to speak when he demonizes whole populations regularly.

UF students have committed to protesting the speaking engagement, and their voices should be heard. Our tuition dollars go to these speakers through student fees, which means that each and every student has chipped in for these speakers. According to Alligator archives, Accent is paying $15,000 of Shapiro’s $20,000 speaking fee. What kind of message does it send when speakers who make UF students feel unsafe are paid using student fees? If this is considered partisan and political, so be it — but when a person on the left speaks on campus, conservatives have no reason to fear. The speaker comes and goes but does not actually threaten the majority.

In this case, Shapiro’s rhetoric can make people unsafe. According to the Southern Poverty Law Center, there has been a dramatic rise in anti-Muslim hate groups, and attacks on Muslim communities can come within hours of an incendiary speech by Trump. It’s not an overstatement to say that Shapiro could have similar effects. Although Shapiro is not a Trump fan, he and the president do have something in common: a history of hateful rhetoric.

Aside from riling up conservatives with misinformation, Shapiro has impacted minorities with unrestrained hate. During one of his TV appearances, he repeatedly misgendered Zoey Tur, and he has exhibited other transphobic behaviors, yet Accent thought it was appropriate to bring him to UF this month: Pride Awareness Month. He also stated that Black Lives Matter is a threat to black men and called the killing of Mike Brown fully justified in videos on his website, the Daily Wire. One of his speeches is called “Truth is a Microaggression.” There’s no room for dialogue when someone believes that a group doesn’t have the right to exist and there is no basis of respect.

Accent should be more conscious of who it invites to campus. When it comes to people who perpetuate intolerance and outright violence against minority communities like Shapiro, what kind of message is it sending to students who are part of those communities? One that says they are not valued at UF.

Inviting conservatives to be impartial — without regard for what they said about those who are LGBTQ+, Muslim or any other marginalized identity — is insensitive, especially when tuition money is being used. Using student fees to pay for a speaker like Shapiro makes it seem like Accent is oblivious to the makeup of our Student Body.

Nicole Dan is a journalism and political science junior. Her column appears on Mondays.