Students gather at Boston University’s Marsh Plaza for an event organized by Black BU in protest of conservative pundit Ben Shapiro speaking on campus Nov. 13, 2019. SERENA YU/ DAILY FREE PRESS STAFFProtestors marched from Marsh Plaza through BU’s West Campus, where Northeastern University and BU police closed off streets to traffic. RACHEL SHARPLES/ DAILY FREE PRESS STAFFA BU police officer rides past the crowd of protestors lining Ashford Street across from the BU Track and Tennis Center, where Shapiro was scheduled to speak. VIVIAN MYRON/ DAILY FREE PRESS STAFFInside the venue, event attendees rise to their feet in a standing ovation as Shapiro takes the stage. RACHEL SHARPLES/ DAILY FREE PRESS STAFFShapiro, podcast host and editor-in-chief of The Daily Wire, speaks at an event titled “America Wasn’t Built On Slavery, It Was Built On Freedom” hosted by BU Young Americans for Freedom. GABRIELA HUTCHINGS/ DAILY FREE PRESS STAFFAn attendee wearing a Trump hat sits amongst the crowd. The sold-out event gave 1,000 free tickets to BU students and faculty and distributed the 500 remaining seats to the general public. RACHEL SHARPLES/ DAILY FREE PRESS STAFFChance Charley (CAS ’21), a leading member of BU Students Against Hate Speech, leads the protests against the Shapiro event outside of the Track and Tennis Center. SOPHIE PARK/ DAILY FREE PRESS STAFFBU Students Against Hate Speech provided signs at their protest that carried messages such as “No B.S. @ BU.” SOPHIE PARK/ DAILY FREE PRESS STAFFAlonso Espinosa, a senior at MIT, speaks to the crowd of roughly 150 protestors who turned out in 27-degree weather. SOPHIE PARK/ DAILY FREE PRESS STAFFFurther down the street, members of Black BU stand in a silent protest facing the Track and Tennis Center. VIVIAN MYRON/ DAILY FREE PRESS STAFFA BU police officer speaks to one of the protestors against the barricade. HANNAH YOSHINAGA/ DAILY FREE PRESS STAFFInside the venue, a vocal attendee who had stood multiple times during Shapiro’s speech is asked to leave the event by security. RACHEL SHARPLES/ DAILY FREE PRESS STAFFA protester stands on a Make America Great Again hat after spitting on it and throwing it on the ground. SOPHIE PARK/ DAILY FREE PRESS STAFF
The Independent Student Newspaper at Boston University
Saturday, November 23, 2024
