Protests Derail University Event With Milo Yiannopoulos, Martin Shkreli

An event featuring Breitbart editor Milo Yiannopoulos and “pharma bro” Martin Shkreli at UC Davis was canceled Friday after protesters blocked the venue and organizers expressed safety concerrns. Shkreli and Yiannopoulos had been invited to speak by the student group Davis College Republicans, but the same group later decided to nix the event after “it was determined that it was no longer feasible to continue with the event safely.” Protesters swarmed outside the building as the event was due to start, holding up signs reading, “No to hate speech!” and “fascism, hate & bigotry will not be tolerated.” Yiannopoulos, known for his controversial, racist rhetoric often used by the alt-right movement, blamed the event’s cancellation on “violence from left-wing protesters” on Facebook. He said he wasn’t “allowed anywhere near the building” because “campus police can’t guarantee anyone’s safety.” Shkreli was able to make it to the venue, and even posed for selfies with some protesters, but he was removed by police after a protester got into his face, according to NBC News. Police arrested one demonstrator for obstructing an officer and battery of a police officer. Although UC Davis denied reports of damage to the campus, local media reports said the protests came close to getting violent, with shoving matches erupting between protesters and counter-protesters. Andrew Mendoza, Executive Director of the College Republicans, was cited as saying the event was canceled because “students’ lives were at risk” and “at a certain point the officers’ lives became to be at risk, and the school property became to be at risk.”