Virginia Tech Just Disinvited A Black Conservative From Speaking On Campus

From The Federalist:

Virginia Tech is totally cool with free speech, just so long as it doesn’t come from a black conservative who might offend the delicate sensibilities of cloistered campus progressives.

Wall Street Journal columnist Jason Riley says he was disinvited from speaking at Virginia Tech due to “concerns” among faculty members about topics raised in his book, “Please Stop Helping Us: How Liberals Make It Harder for Blacks to Succeed.”

And how did Virginia Tech respond to claims that it disinvited a black conservative from speaking on campus? University officials claim that Riley couldn’t be disinvited because he was never invited to speak in the first place. That’s right: Virginia Tech’s response to the charge of specifically blacklisting a prominent minority voice is that it’s impossible because the school wouldn’t dare ask a black conservative to address the school’s faculty or students.

Riley pushed back against the university’s statement, explaining that Douglas Patterson, a finance professor at the university, sent him a written invitation in April which included an offer to pay for Riley’s expenses and to provide an honorarium for his time.

Here's the invitation to speak @virginia_tech says was never extended to me. @WSJopinion @ManhattanInst @FoxNews pic.twitter.com/mTjJUvkDAG

— Jason Riley (@jasonrileywsj) May 4, 2016

That sure seems like an invitation to me.