Ben Shapiro Partners with YAF to Affirm Students’ Free Speech Rights at Berkeley Amid Lawsuit

RESTON, VA—Young America’s Foundation (YAF) will work with Berkeley College Republicans (BCR) to sponsor a speech by Ben Shapiro at the University of California, Berkeley on September 14, 2017, as part of YAF’s nationwide campus lecture program. Young America’s Foundation is once again leading the charge to bring ideological diversity to the University of California, Berkeley by sending a prominent conservative to speak on a campus that rarely, if ever, is exposed to conservative ideas. “Berkeley has a choice: To uphold the the First Amendment rights of all students, or once again cave under pressure from extreme leftists and unconstitutionally censor conservative speech,” said YAF Spokesman Spencer Brown. “Berkeley administrators would be wise to offer the same platform to Ben Shapiro and the conservative students hosting him that they’ve given the parade of leftist speakers who’ve appeared at Berkeley.” Young America’s Foundation will not allow Berkeley administrators to bully conservative students. The Foundation’s efforts to help students advance conservative ideas on their campus do not stop with YAF’s lawsuit against those at Berkeley responsible for violating the First Amendment rights of conservative students. “I look forward to speaking to students of all viewpoints at Berkeley,” commented Ben Shapiro. “I expect that the administration will not hide behind the heckler’s veto of despicable groups like Antifa to prevent this event from moving forward. The home of the free speech movement has an obligation to protect free speech.” Ben Shapiro is the ideal speaker to remind the Berkeley community of its free speech rights. Students at Berkeley want to hear from him, and they have every right to as guaranteed by the United States Constitution. Shapiro graduated summa cum laude from UCLA at the age of 20 and cum laude from Harvard at 23. He was the youngest nationally syndicated columnist in the United States when he was hired at just 17 to provide commentary on the issues of the day. Conservative students have chosen an excellent speaker to address free speech on their campus. “As the nation watches the former home of a free speech movement disintegrate, the university has an opportunity to redeem itself after its countless free speech infringements,” said Naweed Tahmas, external vice president of Berkeley College Republicans. “We are grateful to Young America’s Foundation for standing by conservative students on our campus as we work to advance our values. Students at Berkeley want and deserve to hear from Ben Shapiro, and they will this fall.” Young America’s Foundation and Ben Shapiro have worked together for years, notably providing a conservative viewpoint and restoring sanity on more than 30 campuses, including the University of Missouri; California State University, Los Angeles; DePaul University; and the University of Wisconsin. Through these lectures, thousands of students on campus and millions more online have been exposed to conservative ideas. Follow @YAF and @BenShapiro for updates and tag your tweets with #BenAtBerkeley!

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For further information or to cover this story contact Spencer Brown by phone (800-872-1776) or email ([email protected]).