George Mason may be the father of the Bill of Rights, but it looks like the university named in his honor is having trouble with that part about free speech. From AP:
McLEAN, Va. — An Ohio professor who has called for war with Iran had his invitation to speak at George Mason University rescinded after Muslim students complained that he advocates violence.
On Friday, however, it appeared that the speech might be rescheduled for April.
John Lewis, who teaches history at Ashland University, was invited to speak in conjunction with an article he wrote in December titled “No Substitute for Victory: The Defeat of Islamic Totalitarianism.”
In the article, Lewis calls for war against the Islamic government in Iran and the “immediate, personal destruction” of Muslim clerics and intellectuals who advocate the formation or support of an Islamic state.
The speech had been sponsored in part by the school’s Objectivist Club, which promotes the social philosophies of self-interest of author Ayn Rand. The invitation was pulled after the school received complaints from Muslim students and it was discovered that the club’s charter had lapsed.
Lewis said Friday that the speech had been tentatively rescheduled for April, with the university’s College Republicans club as a new sponsor. But university spokesman Daniel Walsch the school had received no notice of the club’s invitation. …
In a phone interview, Lewis said he does not advocate violence against individual Muslims in the United States who support Islamic law.
“I didn’t plan on going to George Mason with an armed gang. I’m coming to share my ideas,” Lewis said.