UC scrambles to prepare for Coulter talk

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Coulter’s appearance was again thrown into question late Tuesday when she tweeted that she was still expecting Berkeley “to provide a room,” despite the fact that officials have said they cannot offer a safe venue for her to speak.

UC cannot bar Coulter from speaking in Sproul Plaza, Mogulof said. Besides being one of the main campus entrances, Sproul has historic significance as the birthplace of the Free Speech Movement in 1964.

“The university has neither the ability nor desire to keep people off this campus,” Mogulof said. “Sproul Plaza is open to the public.”

But, he added, “You can’t have free speech if your event is canceled” due to violence. Mogulof said time and location are key factors in the ability of campus and city police to ensure safety, which is why the university opposed a Coulter visit on Thursday.

It was not immediately clear exactly when Coulter plans to show up at Sproul, but rightwing groups were using online chat groups to organize a campus visit to coincide with Coulter’s appearance, and they were calling on supporters to be “battle ready.”

Coulter was originally invited to speak Thursday by the Berkeley College Republicans, but UC officials said there was no available venue where they could ensure the safety of those attending or protesting the event after police learned of threats of violence.

University officials offered to reschedule to May 2, but Coulter refused, saying the proposed date was during “Dead Week,” when students would be studying for finals.

Students associated with the Berkeley College Republicans and Young America’s Foundation, the sponsor of the speech, sued the University of California on Monday, saying that not providing a place for Coulter to speak Thursday amounted to unconstitutional censorship.

On Tuesday, Young America’s Foundation, a conservative youth group, backed out of the event, saying UC Berkeley had failed to promise that it would protect people from “leftist thugs.”

The group said it wanted UC to “announce that there will be zero tolerance at the event itself for masked agitators, disruption of the event, and sufficient security to ensure the safety of attendees.”

“UC Berkeley failed to meet our demands, after refusing to provide a proper venue for six weeks. Therefore, Young America’s Foundation will not be moving forward with an event at Berkeley on April 27 due to the lack of assurances for protections from foreseeable violence from unrestrained leftist agitators,” the group said.

Pranav Jandhyala, co-founder of BridgeUSA, a nonpartisan campus group helping to organize Coulter’s visit, said he still hoped organizers could find an indoor venue. But he said he worried that a Coulter appearance on Sproul would result in violence and destruction.

“Honestly, if it were up to me we would do it on a future date,” he said. “If it were up to me, she wouldn’t do it on Sproul. It’s not up to me. It’s up to her.”

Coulter has said in social media posts that she will show up Thursday because she already had a contract to do so.

UC police canceled an appearance in February by another far-right speaker, Milo Yiannopoulos, after a riot began just before his speech was to be delivered. On April 15, 11 people were injured and 20 arrested when Trump supporters and opponents battled in a downtown Berkeley park.

“The University of California welcomes speakers of all political viewpoints and is committed to providing a forum to enable Ann Coulter to speak on the Berkeley campus,” Dianne Klein, spokeswoman for UC President Janet Napolitano, said in a statement. “The campus seeks to ensure that all members of the Berkeley and larger community — including Ms. Coulter herself — remain safe during such an event.”

Students and staff at UC Berkeley opposed to Coulter’s appearance said Tuesday that they planned to hold a demonstration at 5 p.m. Thursday.

Students affiliated with the International Socialist Organization and labor groups on the Cal campus said they will rally Thursday afternoon regardless of Coulter’s plans.

“As the narrative around when, where, and if Ann Coulter will speak at UC Berkeley changes day by day, we know one thing for certain: We stand against xenophobic, bigoted language, and we are in solidarity with undocumented students, community members, and all marginalized populations,” the organization said in a Facebook invitation to the rally.

“It’s important that regardless of what the alt-right is doing on and off campus, that our side, the oppressed majority, continues to get organized,” said Mukund Rathi, a first-year law student at the university and part of the International Socialist Organization.

Although he disagrees with Coulter’s politics, Rathi said, UC shouldn’t be deciding whether or when she can appear.

“The university should not be playing a role in deciding who does or who does not get to speak on campus,” he said. Chronicle staff writer Michael Bodley

contributed to this report.

“We’re going to be doing what we can in this short amount of time that’s left to provide safety and security to our students, other members of the campus community, the public, and, if need be, Ms. Coulter.” Dan Mogulof, UC Berkeley spokesman