UC Berkeley Republicans sue school over Ann Coulter talk – CNN

The lawsuit filed by Berkeley College Republicans and Young America's Foundation accuses the school of discriminating against conservative guest speakers by placing onerous time and location restrictions on their appearances.

The lawsuit seeks to end what it calls an "unconstitutionally vague policy" that the school "selectively" applies to stifle conservative viewpoints.

In response to the lawsuit the school said it welcomes speakers of all political viewpoints, including Coulter.

"UC Berkeley has been working to accommodate a mutually agreeable time for Ms. Coulter's visit -- which has not yet been scheduled -- and remains committed to doing so. The campus seeks to ensure that all members of the Berkeley and larger community -- including Ms. Coulter herself -- remain safe during such an event."

The lawsuit accuses the school of adopting an unwritten "high-profile speaker policy" with the help of the mayor's office and Berkeley Police after the ill-fated Yiannopoulos event. The policy restricts speaking events to before 3 p.m. and says they must be held in a "securable" location, though it's not clear what that means, the lawsuit alleges.

The lawsuit says the stipulations led BCR to cancel an event featuring conservative writer David Horowitz after the school said it would have to pay $5,788 for a security fee.

Coulter said she faced similar time and location conditions for her appearance. Organizers said Coulter's speech was intended as a "counterpoint" to a talk by Maria Echaveste, an adviser to US President Bill Clinton.

Coulter said she accepted the terms, only to have the school "cancel" the event.

The school said its track record shows a commitment to hosting conservative speakers sponsored by BCR, including Ben Shapiro

"... The organization's efforts have led many notable conservatives to share their viewpoints with students and the public on campus," a statement said.

The lawsuit demands make no specific reference to Coulter's event. In addition to unspecified punitive and compensatory damages, it asks for an injunction preventing the school from applying "any unwritten or unpublished policy restricting the exercise of political expression on the UC Berkeley campus."

The lawsuit also asks the court to prevent the school from "selectively enforcing the High-Profile Speaker Policy" against BCR or "unilaterally canceling" speaking events hosted by the group in compliance with written, published university policies."

In a letter to the school threatening legal action last week, organizers said they followed protocol, acceding to the school's "discriminatory" conditions, only to have the event rescheduled to a time when most students would be studying for exams.

In response, Berkeley's counsel faulted organizers for failing to notify the school or seek a security review before signing its contract with Coulter.

CNN's Stephanie Becker and Sonya Hamasaki contributed to this report.

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UC Berkeley Republicans sue school over Ann Coulter talk - CNN

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