Texas A&M cancels Sept. 11 “White Lives Matter” rally
Institutions are taking the time to be more cautious about allowing organizations to hold events on their campus following this past weekend’s horrific scene in Charlottesville, Virginia. They’re specifically thinking twice about welcoming known white supremacists – finally.
Texas A&M was being set up as the next battleground of racism and anti-racists during a scheduled “White Lives Matter” rally on Sept. 11. Thankfully, the university has cancelled the event in advance, according to Slate.
In an attempt to protect itself from legal action, the university changed its policy so that speakers have to be endorsed by a campus organization to gather on campus. Thus preventing “alt-right” organizers Preston Wiginton and Richard Spencer from taking over College Station on the anniversary of the 9/11 attacks.
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“On Dec. 6, 2016 the university and law enforcement allowed the same speaker the opportunity to share his views, taking all of the necessary precautions to ensure a peaceful event,” the university said, according to the Houston Chronicle. “However, in this case, circumstances and information relating to the event have changed and the risks of threat to life and safety compel us to cancel the event.”
The final push to cancel the event may have either come from public backlash or the fact that organizers were actually suggesting the event would be a continuation of the violence of this weekend. The phrase “TODAY CHARLOTTESVILLE TOMORROW TEXAS A&M” could be found in press materials from Wiginton.
“None of the 1200-plus campus organization invited Preston Wiginton nor did they agree to sponsor his events in December 2016 or on September 11 of this year,” Texas A&M said in a statement Monday. “Linking the tragedy of Charlottesville with the Texas A&M event creates a major security risk on our campus.”
Wiginton has stated that he’s looking into taking legal action following the event’s cancellation.