Freedom of Speech Union offers to bring Braverman back

A free speech organization that claims to be an opponent of the “many-headed hydra” of “cancel culture” has offered to cover security costs for Suella Braverman’s rescheduled talk at the Cambridge Conservative Association.

Neither Braverman nor the Conservative Association (CUCA) have confirmed whether they will accept the offer, but CUCA said varsity team that they are “fully committed” to rescheduling the event. The cost of security for the now-cancelled kickoff event was estimated at £1,500.

The organization, the Free Speech Union (FSU), is currently sponsoring fellow “race realist” Nathan Cofnas’ lawsuit against Emmanuel College, his former employer.

Toby Young, founder of FSU and associate editor of Viewercounted varsity team that the organization is proposing to fund the event through the Ian Mactaggart Fund, which has funded several controversial student events in recent years.

The former home secretary was due to speak at a CUCA event last week, before the event was canceled amid planned protests by student groups.

In announcing the cancellation of the event, CUCA cited “unprecedented logistical and security difficulties”, while Braverman accused student activists of using “threats, intimidation and crowd domination tactics”.

Daniel Zeichner, Labor MP for Cambridge, said varsity team: “Suella Braverman is a grassroots Conservative MP who appears to be courting media coverage. In my opinion, it’s best to ignore it.

Braverman claimed she was advised by police to abandon the visit, while Cambridgeshire Police told the Sunday schedules that the event was considered “low risk”.

The Cambridge Organization of Radical Activists, one of the groups behind the planned protest, said varsity team that the “alleged ‘security concerns’ were baseless and mobilized to protect Braverman from scrutiny.” The planned protest fell “within the normal right to freedom of assembly in the United Kingdom, despite Braverman’s best attempts while in office”, they said.

Cambridge Stop the War also criticized Braverman’s comments about the cancellation, saying varsity team: “There is no “crowd rule”. We will not be intimidated by Braverman’s scaremongering.”

Jason Scott-Warren, English professor and member of the University Council, also said varsity team: “Suella Braverman’s claim that she could not speak in Cambridge because of protest by ‘militants’ is a gross misrepresentation.”

Scott-Warren said the former Home Secretary is “dedicated to crushing the right to peaceful protest”, adding: “that right is alive and well in our universities”.

The Ian Mactaggart Fund funded two security guards for a student screening of a film titled ‘Birthgap – Childless World’ in Cambridge last year, Young said. varsity team. The film, described as “anti-feminist” by some students, blames the “pitfalls of feminism and the modern dating world” for “the collapse of the planet’s birth rate”, and was met with student protests.

James Orr, professor at the Faculty of Divinity at Cambridge, sits on the FSU advisory board, alongside author Lionel Shriver and historian David Starkey. Last year, a faculty member described Orr as “racist” following his comments about pro-Palestinian protests.

Last week, Orr accused student protesters of trying to “intimidate” Braverman and attacked Labor for “betraying” free speech.

The Union for Free Speech was created by Young in 2020, with the stated aim of “safeguarding and promoting freedom of expression”. The organization’s website states that “cancel culture” is a “many-headed hydra”: “every time we manage to cut off one of these heads, three more grow in its place.”

Young man said varsity team that FSU has taken on about 3,000 free speech cases since 2020, about 20% of which involved campus disputes.

The organization maintains a ranking of universities according to the number of cases they have been involved in, Young said, with Cambridge coming in second, with FSU having weighed in on 17 occasions, behind Durham with 22 cases. Oxford sits third in the table, seen by varsity teamwith 14 cases of FSU involvement in freedom of expression.

Suella Braverman’s CUCA event is not the first time the former Home Secretary has faced controversy in Cambridge. In May, the parliamentarian visited the city’s pro-Palestinian camps, together with GB News anchor Patrick Christys. Braverman tried to speak to student members of Cambridge for Palestine (C4P), but they all refused.

At the time, Braverman said varsity team that she believes the Gaza campus protests are “anti-Semitic”, while Cambridge Jews for Justice said “non-Jewish” politicians were using the protests to “weaponize (Jewish) identities”.

A University spokesperson told the Sunday schedules that it would have “provided arrangements” if it had been notified about the CUCA event: “The university fully supports freedom of expression within the law and has recently implemented its policy on freedom of expression. We respect the right to protest within the law.”

CUCA said varsity team: “We are currently in discussions as part of our efforts to reschedule the postponed event. However, no agreement has been reached between us, Suella’s team and any other third party. We are currently unable to comment on security measures or costs.”

Toby Young said varsity team: “FSU contacted Suella Braverman and CUCA and offered to pay security costs if they wanted to reschedule this event.”