Thomas Friedman of the New York Times is the latest in a growing line of public figures whose capacity to speak is being violated on college campuses. Friedman was subject to pie throwing by an attendee who jumped up from the front row as he began to speak.
Apparently the university does not plan to press charges against the assailant. One must ask why not. It's a physical assault. Even more importantly, it's an assault against freedom of expression.
The student, whose state of mind enabled her to conclude that such disruption is a valid and effective technique of argumentation, likely does not know the history of such actions. Has she read about how Dr. Goebbels used such techniques in Berlin against opponents of the Nazi party?
Brown University has no such excuse. It also has obligations. One hopes that strong actions will be taken in the future against assailants. One also hopes that security is provided as a matter of course for speakers.
