RACISM: “Hundreds of police officers wearing bulletproof vests were deployed at the University of Florida on Thursday [10-19-17] to guard against unrest over a speech by a white nationalist that was expected to draw thousands in protest.
Richard Spencer’s event at the university in Gainesville, which prompted the governor to declare a state of emergency to prepare for possible violence, comes about two months after rallies by neo-Nazis and white supremacists in Charlottesville, Virginia, led to a deadly clash with counter-protesters.
The violence on Aug. 12 sparked a national debate on race, and Republican President Donald Trump came under fire for blaming both sides for the melee.
Spencer, who heads the National Policy Institute, a nationalist think tank, is scheduled to speak at 2:30 p.m. EDT (1830 GMT) at a campus performing arts center. The university said it did not invite him to speak, but was obligated by law to allow the event. It said it will spend more than $500,000 on security.”
-Zachary Fagenson, “Florida college braces for protests over white nationalist’s speech,” Reuters, Oct. 19, 2017 03:39am