Filibuster Cartoons
 |
|
 |
Ann Coulter, the famously hyperbolic conservative pundit whom everyone loves to self-righteously denounce, was in Canada this week as a part of a speaking tour across various college campuses.
Her presence was not universally welcomed, as you might expect. A much anticipated speaking gig at the University of Ottawa ended up being preemptively shut down by the police, after massive student protests threatened to turn the event into complete anarchy.
The protests came in the wake of other concerted efforts by university bigwigs to shut Ms. Coulter up, including a rather pushy letter from the University vice president who implied Coulter could possibly face “criminal charges” if her commentary was too “hateful,” and a campaign by the student union to deny approval of any on-campus advertising of her visit.
The whole episode has spawned a lengthy debate in the Canadian press regarding the state of free speech in this country, and, embarrassingly, in the international press as well. The Provost’s claim that Canadians proudly employ a “strong tradition” of censoring potentially offensive speech is hardly a universally supported statement, yet Ms. Coulter’s fame and status makes the U of O’s bungled handling of her visit a disturbing precedent for the rest of the world to observe.
Coulter, for her part — as she is so good at doing — is laughing all the way to the bank. Her post-Ottawa appearance at the University of Calgary completely sold out, drawing much bigger-than-anticipated crowds. If Coulter has anything to gain from toning it down, it sure isn’t obvious.
