The cost of controversy: Yiannopoulos
Bringing controversial speaker Milo Yiannopoulos — whose past speeches touched on his feel that trigger warnings and safe spaces are ridiculous and the number of sexual assaults on college campuses is exaggerated — to campus today will cost his host organization over $600.
Yiannopoulos is set to speak at the Marshall Student Center (MSC) Oval Theater as part of his “Dangerous Faggot” Tour at 7 p.m. The event was coordinated by the Young Americans for Liberty (YAL).
The event cost YAL $662 of its allocated budget, according to the club’s reservation with the MSC.
“Why would we need something like this to come?” Ryan Hoskins, YAL president and the event’s organizer, said. “I feel like there are people here and they have their ideas, and that’s awesome.
“But that’s not great and that’s not awesome when those ideas … silence other people’s ideas simply because they’re not your own.”
The majority of the $662 will be going toward security. Though Yiannopoulos has a private detail, University Police will be providing the bulk of the coverage. At past events, protestors have rushed the stage, shouted and blown whistles in the crowd, and picketed outside which required security responses, according several online videos. The rest of the money will go toward staff, microphones and a projector.
In response to Yiannopoulos’ event, student organizations including Students for a Democratic Society plan to protest outside of the MSC.
According to the reservation, no signs will be allowed inside the Oval Theatre.
Tickets are still available through Eventbrite.
More Stories
Bomb threat at USF Cooper hall wasn’t legitimate, police say
University Police (UP) determined a reported bomb threat at Cooper Hall on Tuesday night wasn’t legitimate. After sweeping Cooper Hall, UP found “nothing of concern,” according to a universitywide email sent out at 12:39 a.m on Wednesday. The investigation is still ongoing, according to police. The USF community was first alerted to the bomb threat […]
Pro-Palestine encampment protest at USF broken up by tear gas
Law enforcement broke up a pro-Palestine encampment of around 100 protesters at the USF Tampa campus Tuesday evening using tear gas. The demonstration was the second in two days at USF where students, employees and community members urged the university to divest from companies with financial ties to Israel. Related: Several protesters at USF arrested […]
Several protestors at USF arrested during pro-Palestine encampment protest
Three protestors were arrested by University Police (UP) Monday afternoon during a pro-Palestine demonstration outside the Marshall Student Center (MSC), according to USF spokesperson Althea Johnson. Johnson said the three arrests included a student, an employee and an individual who is not associated with the university. Related: USF pro-Palestine hunger strikers removed from BOT meeting […]
The Oracle needs your help
Dear reader: Reporters for USF’s award-winning student newspaper, The Oracle, have recently navigated through a pandemic, a rapidly evolving political climate and a change in university president – all with the goal of sharing important news and stories. Though The Oracle has been an integral part in keeping the USF community informed since 1966, we […]
USF won’t install more physical protections following recent on-campus suicide
USF will not be implementing additional physical safety measures over a month after a student leapt from an upper floor inside the Interdisciplinary Sciences building, USF spokeswoman Althea Johnson said. The incident marked the third on-campus suicide since fall 2022. A week after a student fell from an upper floor of Beard Garage in 2022, […]
Meet USF’s new student body president and vice president
A new era of Student Government (SG) just arrived. In a quick five-minute ceremony, student body president-elect Suryakanth Prasad Gottipati and vice president-elect Sumit Subhash Jadhav were sworn in on Wednesday afternoon. Their term will start on May 6 and last for one year. Related: Take a look at USF’s student leaders’ swearing in ceremony […]