Rocsteady wrote:I said I'd rather such views were challenged in person
Ah I get you now.
It's about challenging someone, not about helping/supporting people.
That's why you don't
care why Milo wants to be there - you need/want him to be there to be challenged. That why you said people will think of them as cowards if they don't debate/attend.[I did take this to mean you think of them that way, but given your objection maybe that's a misunderstanding]
You're not thinking any further than the event attendees.
Righto. Let's do a simple, rough impact assessment shall we? Pretty much completely made up figures.
Let's say....100 people attend this small talk
Let's say 99 of them are most die hard Milo-fans available.
Let's say 1 of them is the best and most challenging debtor ever. He talks round all 99 attendees. He's
that good. (We'll ignore Milo)
Those 99 minds are changed and, let's say, they go away ashamed and decide to talk another 99 die hard fans away. One of them even talks around 3! That's 200 minds changed.
But wait...there's 50,000 people at the Uni.
Let's say 10,000 of them become aware of the talk via publications/advertisement on site. (Let's again assume MSM don't get involved, and it's not publicised to Milo's online community "Hey look invited to talk at a proper place like I'm not a shitstain of a human being...we're growing chaps!")
Let's make some more assumptions (again this isn't an in depth analysis)
1,000 of them are MilofansThey see their views hosted by their private insinuation.
They take comfort and re-enforcement from it.
Will many (any?) of them take 'direct' action? Probably not
But it appears tacit endorsement, and
emboldens hate.
There's a reason hate crimes are up in Post-Brexit Britain and Trump's America - and it's not because of no platforming. It's because people have been given the confidence to act by hate "going mainstream". (UC Berkly isn't mainstream I know, but the point stands)
5,000 of them belong to various different minoritiesThey see their private institution host someone who actively promotes hate against them.
No direct action has to be taken (could it? Sure, but let's be optimistic) - but they feel concerned.
Speech against them was supported/enabled by somewhere they belong to.
It was invited and allowed on site. Someone's who's actively destroyed people live's like them, has been given a platform to do so again.
It increases fear and unease.
2,000 are Anti-MiloHuh they think
(Can't really think of any significant impacts on them)
2,000 are "undecided"Almost universally not going to be affected by seeing a poster
Some might start seeing the views are more legitimate, mainstream and supported, since their private institution is hosting. But that could also work the other way
That 200 changed minds suddenly looks very small. (But then I made up the figures
)
People don't no-platform to stop those that want to hear someone (in this case Milo) speak - they can do that in lots of other places and lots of other ways. Free speech isn't threatened - but those that would be threatened are supported.
What is threatened, and what is what No-Platforming tries to take away, is legitimisation (and appearance of validation/acceptance) to a much much wider audience than those in attendance.
Milo could have said "Not allowed to attend UCB? Pfft. I've booked the Hilton Conference Room A down the road instead. HA"...but that doesn't have the same effect.
Moggy wrote:What does it matter if Rocsteady is straight?
Milo is gay, that means Hexx is the one closest to him.
Because it's likely that he's never encountered, and likely will never encounter, the type of hate he wants...enabled? Publicised? Can't think of right words. (there's others I've not mentioned, working class, disabilities etc).
Tell you what - find a person of ethnic minority you know best. Who knows you, knows you're kind, intelligent and thematic. Ask them if they think you can, despite all your best efforts, truly understand discrimination against [ethnicity] on the same basis they can.
I'm not certain of what their answer will be, but I'm confident.