Tag: hate speech

Justice Responds To Del. Walker's Letter To Address Hate, White Supremacy

In a virtual press briefing Friday, Gov. Jim Justice addressed a letter sent to him by West Virginia House of Delegates member Danielle Walker, a Democrat from Monongalia County.

The letter called on Justice to address a rise in white supremacy and messages of hate across West Virginia.

Justice said he had received Walker’s letter and ordered the state police and the West Virginia Human Rights Commission to reach out to Walker and look into the issue.

“We don’t need to tolerate at any level, any level of hate and hatred and hate speech … anywhere at any time,” Justice said.

Walker’s letter recalled participating in a Black Lives Matter event in Kingwood on Sept. 12. What was promoted as a peaceful event, reportedly turned hostile when those protesting racial injustice were met by counter protesters.

Walker said another event in Morgantown the following day was also met with several of the same counter protesters.

The Council on American-Islamic Relations released a statement Friday, condemning the messages of hate Walker received. The group is the nation’s largest Muslim civil liberties and advocacy organization.

WVU President Condemns Breitbart Editor's Slur Targeting Professor

This article has been updated to clarify the desription of Breitbart News Network.   

West Virginia University President E. Gordon Gee released a statement today that defended his decision to allow Milo Yiannopoulos to speak on campus while also condemning Yiannopoulos’ attack on a faculty member. 

During a tour stop on Thursday, Dec. 2, at West Virginia University, Yiannopoulos – an editor for Breitbart News Network – praised WVU’s Mountaineer mascot, particularly for the fact that he fires a rifle during football games. Former executive chair Steve Bannon has described Breibart as “the platform for the alt-right,” a name that encompasses white nationalists and others embracing white identity politics, including white supremacy. 

Then he added, “There’s one thing about this college however that I’ve got to tell you, I’m not fond of,” he said. A slide with a photo of Daniel Brewster, a sociology instructor who is openly gay, and a homophobic slur appeared on the screen. 

Yiannopoulos is known nationally for his sexist and racist stances. The audience responded with laughter, and Yiannopoulos continued to make fun of Brewster’s weight and sexuality.

Gee issued a statement Friday defending the university’s decision to invite Yiannopoulos to speak, while condemning the speaker’s attack on Brewster. 

“It is one thing to share differing opinions that others may find offensive,” Gee said in his statement. “It is another to be defamatory and target individuals. I personally condemn the tactic this speaker chose to vindictively attack one of our faculty members, Daniel Brewster.” 

Yiannopoulos went after Brewster and accused Brewster, who is openly gay, of holding an event for World AIDS Day during Yiannopoulos’s talk to pull the audience from the speaker’s event.

But a university spokesperson said that Brewster’s event was scheduled in July by the College Republicans, months before Yiannopoulos was invited to speak.. 

Gee and WVU students also took to Twitter today to show support for Brewster, using the hashtag “#BecauseofBrewster” to publicly state the impact Brewster had on their lives. 

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