Joe Cohn
Heterodox Academy
Excerpt: When protesters took over Columbia University’s Butler Library on May 7, prevented others from using the library for their studies, vandalized the building, and apparently assaulted university staff, they were not just violating the university's rules. They were also engaged in criminal activity.
As HxA has previously stated, the right to protest from any point of view on any topic is an essential aspect of freedom of speech vital to the health of college campuses. But the right does not extend to occupying buildings, excluding others from shared spaces, vandalism, violence, or any other attempt to disrupt the functioning of an institution of higher education. Those activities prevent others from engaging in open inquiry (including research and studying) and can—as they did at Butler Library—also endanger people.
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