Yale Students Protest, Disrupt, Pro-Free Speech Event

Students at Yale on Saturday protested—and in one case disrupted—an event held by the William F. Buckley, Jr. Program that was designed to highlight the importance of freedom of speech.

According to a report in the Yale Daily News “several attendees were spat on” by the protestors.

The targets of the protest and disruption were participating in the Buckley Program’s “Fifth Annual Conference on the Future of Free Speech: Threats in Higher Education and Beyond.”

The conference is held in keeping with the program’s mission “to expand political discourse on campus and to expose students to often-unvoiced views.”

The Yale Daily News, citing Buckley Fellows (Yale students who participate in the program), reported that protestors spat on conference attendees as they departed.

“A large group of students eventually gathered outside of the building on High Street," the Yale Daily News reported. "According to Buckley fellows present during the conference, several attendees were spat on as they left. One Buckley fellow said he was spat on and called a racist. Another, who is a minority himself, said he has been labeled a 'traitor' by several fellow minority students. Both asked to remain anonymous because they were afraid of attracting backlash."

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