Richard Dawkins is a writer, biologist, and outspoken atheist. He has long been a hero of the left and was scheduled to do an event at Berkeley hosted by a local progressive radio station.The event has been cancelled however, due to some tweets by Dawkins which were critical of Islamism.The Patheos blog reports:
Berkeley Cancels Talk By Richard Dawkins Because Of His “Abusive Speech” Towards IslamRichard Dawkins was slated to give a talk with a radio station in the city of Berkeley to discuss his latest book: Science in the Soul: Selected Writings of a Passionate Atheist.However, the talk was canceled.KPFA, the Berkeley radio station that sponsored the event gave the following reason:
Dear Richard Dawkins event ticket buyers,We regret to inform you that KPFA has canceled our event with Richard Dawkins. We had booked this event based entirely on his excellent new book on science, when we didn’t know he had offended and hurt – in his tweets and other comments on Islam, so many people.KPFA does not endorse hurtful speech. While KPFA emphatically supports serious free speech, we do not support abusive speech. We apologize for not having had broader knowledge of Dawkins views much earlier. We also apologize to all those inconvenienced by this cancellation. Your ticket purchases will automatically be refunded by Brown Paper Tickets.Sincerely,KPFA Radio 94.1 FM
Here’s a sample of the offending tweets:
Berkeleyside has more including a statement from Dawkins:
KPFA cancels Richard Dawkins’ speech because of his tweets about IslamDawkins challenged KPFA’s interpretation of his tweets through a press release issued by the Center for Public Inquiry. In 2017, his Richard Dawkins Foundation for Reason & Science merged with the Center for Public Inquiry and Dawkins holds a board seat.“The idea that I have engaged in abusive speech against Islam is preposterous, which even the most rudimentary fact-checking by KPFA would have made clear,” Dawkins is cited as saying in the press release. “I have indeed strongly condemned the misogyny, homophobia, and violence of Islamism, of which Muslims — particularly Muslim women — are the prime victims. I make no apologies for denouncing those oppressive cruelties, and I will continue to do so.”
Rod Dreher of the American Conservative makes an excellent point about all of this:
It is interesting to know that in the eyes of progressives like these, some religions are more worthy of consideration than others. Islam, generally speaking, is vastly more illiberal than Christianity. Somehow, though, Islam falls under the protecting veil of progressivism.
Other reactions have been similarly critical of the banning of Dawkins, including from Bret Weinstein, the Evergreen State College professor who suffered abuse at the hands of social justice warriors, and his brother Eric:
Featured image via YouTube.
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