A "Hateful Conduct" Policy At Work

What a Mess at Massey

We have been chuckling over the twirling dervishes being performed at Massey University at the moment.  A group defending the free speech rights of lesbians will soon be speaking on the Massey Campus, Wellington shortly--or so we are led to believe.  

Meghan Murphy, a Canadian feminist blogger who believes transgender rights endanger women, has been invited to speak at the campus' theatrette in November.  A radical feminist banned from Twitter for violating its hateful conduct policy will panel a ticketed event hosted by Massey University in Wellington.  [Stuff]

But this "event" has been vigorously opposed by a bunch of gender dysphoric folk.

Tallulah Farrar, College of Creative Arts Representative, said "concerning information" about the event had pushed her to lay a complaint. She "worried about the wellbeing and safety of students" if the event went ahead.

"This event is marketed as controversial, and will bring more radical, exclusionary, hateful voices onto our campus who we should not be welcoming. Being complicit in these kinds of conversations is akin to breeding hate towards members of our Massey community who are already marginalised."

Of course we support free-speech rights and thus believe that lesbian Meghan Murphy has every right along with her mates to speak about the conflicts between lesbians and the gender dysphoric.  We would argue that Massey's  commitment to free speech, however, would be more convincing if and when that institution opens its doors to groups and speakers promoting the free speech rights of males. 

Massey University you recall recently closed down a public meeting at which Dr Don Brash was invited to speak.
  The feminist and gender dysphoric advocates were supported by the university's Vice Chancellor and Dr Brash was silenced before he could utter a public word.  Maybe Massey University is now returning to a policy of traditional liberal values when it comes to free and public speech.  If so, it would be a welcome volte-face. 

But, in the meantime, it is entertaining to see a female political group--committed to free speech one imagines--displaying that they have no idea what free speech is.  Their pathetic response to Meghan Murphy indicates that for them free speech rights mean that everyone else must be silenced whilst their views and ideologies alone be "permitted" speech.