50,000 want to ban Trump: Illinois Univ. says ‘more speech, not censorship’

Students at the University of Illinois at Chicago have circulated an online petition to cancel the Trump appearance and garnered 50,000 signatures, according to Inside Higher Ed.

Opponents called the Trump appearance “immense disrespect to students,” “against all public urban university values,” and a threat to student safety.

Those criticisms prompted Chancellor Michael Amiridis to send a campus message defending the decision to allow the rally.

“It has been our standard practice for decades to rent available space on campus to any political candidate when requested. As a result, we have a long history of campaign events on campus, and no legal basis to exclude any candidate because of the views he or she expresses,” he said.

“UIC’s core values of freedom, equality and social justice for all, regardless of race, religion, national origin, disability status or sexual orientation, are deeply rooted in our diverse community and not endangered by the presence of any political candidate on campus. We encourage public and civic engagement by all members of our University and we endorse the idea that the answer to speech that one does not like or finds offensive is more speech and not censorship,” Amiridis continued.