Will Ann Coulter 'Swing by' UC Berkeley Today, Despite Violent Threats?

Conservative pundit Ann Coulter has become the face of free speech this month and today she may push her First Amendment rights and "swing by to say hello" to supporters at the University of California Berkeley.

On Wednesday, the author and speaker said she was forced to cancel her speaking event on campus which she planned to hold in defiance of university officials. She pointed the finger at her conservative student organizers who withdrew their invitation.

"I looked over my shoulder and my allies had joined the other team," she told Reuters.

Last week, campus officials barred her speech saying they could not find a safe venue on campus.  

Coulter is the second conservative speaker whose Berkeley event was scrubbed because of security issues. In February, Breitbart editor Milo Yiannopoulos called off his appearance after protesters started fires, broke windows and clashed with police.

Coulter has left the door open for Thursday, telling the Associated Press, "I'm not speaking, but I'm going to be near there so I might swing by to say hello to my supporters who have flown in from all around the country."

Police and university officials are preparing for possible trouble whether or not Coulter comes to campus. They've cited online chatter from groups threatening violence.

Chancellor Nicholas Dirks told students Wednesday that the university "continues to plan for potentially violent demonstrations and counter-demonstrations on Sproul Plaza throughout the day" on Thursday.

What's At Stake?

Across the country, free speech advocates, including the ACLU, are blaming UC Berkeley for its unwillingness to protect Coulter.  

The ACLU has condemned Berkeley for practicing censorship, arguing "once invited, being disinvited by government (in this case public university) amounts to unlawful censorship."

But once invited, being disinvited by government (in this case public university) amounts to unlawful censorship. https://t.co/y37J91yPt4

— ACLU National (@ACLU) April 27, 2017

National Review columnist David French opined "the university is in full retreat, with the mob forcing the speech it doesn't like into smaller venues, at times when far fewer people can hear it."

"If law enforcement fails to defend our nation's founding liberties, then, ultimately, an armed citizenry will," he predicts.

Christian thought leader Ed Stetzer says he's no Coulter fan but agrees that Berkeley should have kept the door open.

Even liberals have been stepping forward to blast Berkeley. A Huffington Post op-ed condemned the school arguing "the administration can either allow all student-invited speakers, or none. What it cannot do is pick and choose on purely political grounds."

And Sen. Bernie Sanders, a self-described democratic socialist, chided those who would prevent Coulter from speaking. "What are you afraid of--her ideas?" he asked.

The Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE), a national free speech advocacy group, is calling on Berkeley to make plans to ensure that no future speaker is canceled.  

"Moving forward, UC Berkeley must be properly prepared to host and protect speakers of all stripes," it said in a statement. "The health of our democracy demands no less."