By: Ari Lamm

This past Monday, the Oxford Union hosted a Free Speech Forum aptly termed “a night of discussion on the limits of free speech.” The prestigious debating society, which aspires to be “at the cutting edge of controversy,” chose to invite as participants in the forum, infamous Holocaust-denier David Irving, and Chairman of the British National Party (and also Holocaust-denier) Nick Griffin. This decision provoked a good deal of outrage and, as the always-excellent John Burns reports in the New York Times, resulted in about 300 protestors storming the Oxford Union debate hall and sitting on the head table in an attempt to prevent the forum from taking place. The forum was unable to proceed as planned, but was split into two smaller forums and continued in guarded rooms. Continue reading »