Gina Anderson

On February 25, the College Republicans of Michigan State University and guest speaker Dan Flynn found themselves facing threats of arrest for going forward with a speech at the Wilson Hall Auditorium after a hall staff member attempted to shut down the lecture, alleging that the event differed from a previously approved proposal.

The local chapter of the Leadership Institute, an organization that provides support and training to conservative students, had scheduled Dan Flynn to speak at MSU as a guest of the College Republicans, the student organization sponsoring the event. Jason Miller, chair of the MSU College Republicans, had taken the necessary steps to reserve an auditorium for the event in Wilson Hall by gaining approval from the hall government for an event on the topic of patriotism.

Despite these preparations, the event would not proceed smoothly. Three-and-a-half hours before the speech was scheduled to start, a hall staff member found a flier advertising the event with the title, "Why the Left Hates America: the Irrationality of Anti-Americanism," and brought it to the attention of other hall officials. The poster took its title from Flynn's book, Why the Left Hates America:Exposing the Lies that Have Obscured Our Nation's Greatness. Ostensibly the staff member's concern was that this title differed from the previously described patriotism theme and that the hall was hosting an event that had not been approved. Complex Director Christine Engel sent Assistant Hall Director Erin Belinger to speak with Miller and Flynn before the speech.

Arriving in the hall several minutes before the speech was scheduled to start, Belinger spoke to Miller and Flynn about her concerns. She asked them to tell her what the speech was about and they gave her an opportunity to see Flynn's speech notes. At this point, the situation escalated.

"Miss Belinger refused to look at the notes, said she wouldn't stay for the speech to see what it was about and acted extremely irrationally," accused Miller.

"They called me a censor, they said that I had a personal agenda, and I tried to explain to them that [holding an unapproved event] was a policy violation of Michigan State protection of student groups…they refused to hear that," Belinger told Campus Report.

With both sides unable to reconcile the situation, the argument grew to the point where Belinger threatened to call the police. "What I told them was that if they were using the room for a purpose other than what had been approved that I would call the police and have them clear out the room," said Belinger.

In response to her threat, Flynn said, "Her authority didn't supercede the First Amendment." He added that according to Belinger, "If I were to speak at the podium she was going to get the campus police and arrest me, and I said that if you can find a police officer who views speech as a crime then be my guest."

According to Flynn, only a quarter of his speech concerned the Left, and then only the radical Left. His lecture covered many topics including the history and many accomplishments of America. Flynn believes that if Belinger had looked at his notes that her fears of fraud would have been allayed, but "she refused to do that, which proved to anyone with a brain that she was just hell-bent on kicking us out of the room no matter what the reason was."

"It was two minutes before the speech was about to start and I didn't want to bar the beginning of the speech because they were already calling me a censor," counters Belinger.

Belinger left the room and returned to the hall office where the option of calling the police was discussed, but not pursued.

Adding to the controversy, Flynn's scheduled time at the podium was cut short by a fire drill. Though the fire drill is a scheduled monthly occurence, neither the College Republicans nor Flynn had been informed that the drill would be held during Flynn's lecture time until the author arrived at MSU, a circumstance that Flynn called "incredibly peculiar" and "amazingly curious." Flynn shortened his speech accordingly so that he could still answer questions afterward.

Despite the Wilson Hall staff's avid defense of its actions, the general student opinion on campus holds that attempts to intervene in Flynn's speech smacked of censorship. Following the incident, an editorial in the StateNews campus newspaper, letters to the editor, an article in the campus blog, and reports on the College Republican's website all condemned the Wilson Hall reps and complained about how liberal the campus had become. One writer for State News Blues, the campus blog, wrote, "If the Wilson Hall reps feel misled then they probably weren't paying attention in the first place." He added that, "the conventional non-wisdom on campus tends to think the mere presence of Conservatives compromises the safety and peace."

In his letter to the campus newspaper, Matthew Thome, an MSU junior, wrote, "Belinger's failure to even look at the speech notes to determine the actual content of the speech shows she was more concerned with pursuing a personal agenda rather than addressing the facts." Dan Kelly, another student, complained in his letter that MSU is "a liberal-rich environment…this place has become far too one-sided when it comes to issues related to politics."

Belinger, as well as other hall and university administrators, continue to insist that the confrontation with Flynn and Miller had nothing to do with free speech. "The incident that occurred was never a censorship issue. It was an issue where I, as the advisor of a student group, was working to protect that student group because of a suspected policy violation…I strongly believe in the First Amendment and people's right to speech," Belinger told Campus Report.

Paul Goldblatt, director of Residence Life at MSU, agreed with her, saying that the event "seemed to be a very different program from the non-partisan discussion of why America is great. So her reason for going there wasn't any type of censorship." He continued his defense by referring to The Spartan Life, a guideline for students and staff that says, "No student shall provide false information to a group for the purpose of gaining membership, services or privilege," and may not "represent a group falsely."

Goldblatt also supported Erin Belinger's decision to not read Dan Flynn's speech notes and then make a decision because "that can be applied censorship." He further supported her by affirming that she did have the authority to question Miller and Flynn, and that she did not overstep the boundaries of her position.

Both sides plan to take a course of action against the other. It was reported on the College Republicans' website that Belinger was at first planning to demand that their charter be revoked for violating university policy and committing fraud. The Wilson Hall Student Group's current plans towards the group are unclear, as Belinger refused comment on that subject. In fact, Belinger would only talk with Campus Report on the condition that she could preview the portion of her interview that would be included in this article. While the ramifications for the College Republicans remain unclear, the controversy over Flynn's speech has already prompted a change in policy. Members of the Wilson Hall Government unanimously passed a by-law stating that before any presentation to be held in the Wilson Auditorium can be approved, any and all fliers or other advertisements must be presented and approved as well.

Miller and the College Republicans are also taking action. They are planning to hold an anti-discrimination hearing where they will voice their objections to Belinger's alleged censorship, provide evidence that it was ideologically motivated, and cite her failure to follow other university policies which regulate the process by which a previously approved event can be shut down.

Belinger continues to claim that her actions were justified. "I feel that the most important thing that will come from this is that it will be a real eye-opener to student groups about how important it is to have specific policies in place to protect themselves," she said.

Flynn, who does not believe that the controversy was ever an issue of policy violation, disagreed. "I don't check my First Amendment rights at the door at any college campus," he said, "especially one supported by tax dollars like Michigan State."