Milo Yiannopoulos, British technology journalist and entrepreneur, spoke in Laurie Auditorium last Sunday on microaggressions. The lecture was organized by Tigers for Liberty. In a response to a March 22 discussion regarding microaggressions organized by the Trinity Progressives, the Black Student Union and the Trinity Diversity Connection.
Manfred Wendt, the president of Tigers for Liberty, said the event was meant to encourage free speech on campus.
“We want Trinity to be a free marketplace of ideas, where contentious topics can be discussed intellectually and civilly. While not everyone at Trinity or everyone in Tigers for Liberty may agree with what the speaker has to say”” it is important that we address these ideas head on in the pursuit of truth,” Wendt said.
In his lecture, Yiannopoulos said that microaggressions are good news for Americans.
“The idea is that you could be racist without even knowing it. It’s completely bullocks. Microaggressions [are] good news. The fact that the left has had to come up with microaggressions””these tiny things that you do [that] might be sending signals that you’re racist, sexist or homophobic””this a symbol that racism, sexism and homophobia [are] gone,” Yiannopoulos said. “If you have to look that hard for it, then it ain’t around anymore.”
Throughout his speech, Yiannopoulos referred to microaggressions as a product of “outrage culture.”
“The best way to deal with outrage culture, the grievance, the victimhood that being offended means something. Well, it doesn’t. It’s not an argument. You all are fucking crazy,” Yiannopoulos said.
Throughout the lecture, Yiannopoulos discussed upcoming and past stops on his international tour, “Dangerous Faggot Tour.” On Oct. 27, Yiannopoulos plans to give a talk at Yale University regarding cultural appropriation in full Native American headdress and clothing.
“I’m going to give a talk on the 27th of October, just before Halloween, about cultural appropriation, which is this bullshit idea from the left that dressing in mariachi costumes is inappropriate because you haven’t suffered the oppression of those cultures,” Yiannopoulos said. “I’m going to do this talk in full Native American costume.”
Yiannopoulos discussed his ambition to get dreadlocks in the future.
“White people with dreadlocks are supposedly cultural appropriating. Do you think I should get dreadlocks? I’m having this debate amongst myself. Supposedly that’s racist. I don’t know why,” Yiannopoulos said.
The event was free and open to the public and attracted off-campus individuals. More than 175 people attended the event.
Yiannopoulos is an avid Trump supporter on his social media accounts he often refers to the Republican candidate as “Daddy.” Some audience members were Trump supporters wearing red “Make America Great Again” hats. One audience member even dressed as Donald Trump wearing a blond wig and suit that he said during the question and answer period was in honor of Trump.
“If you have Trump stickers on your laptop, apparently that’s a racist act now. Supporting the leading Republican candidate? It’s crazy,” Yiannopoulos said.
Yiannopoulos made several arguments against feminism during his talk. Yiannopoulos, who was heavily involved in the Gamergate controversy, called female video game critics “bullies” in several articles. Yiannopoulos referenced the Gamergate controversy and feminism during his talk.
“You need to be worried that these people run the media, the entertainment industries, the video game industry. Feminists have overrun comic books, fantasy and sci-fi. They tried with video games and it didn’t work because gamers were like “˜yeah, fuck off,'” Yiannopoulos said.
Yiannopoulos also addressed men’s rights activists saying that they are often unjustly accused of hating women.
“The reason men’s rights activists get accused of misogyny is not because they hate women, it’s because they have taken seriously what feminists have been asking us to do for 30 years, which is to treat them like men. Well, taunting is how men bond. Women are cunts to each other. Men roast each other and women can’t cope with it,” Yiannopoulos said.
Yiannopoulos also argued that feminists do not want men to be nice to them.
“You’re also not allowed to be nice to feminists because that’s a microaggression. This is kind of like the opening doors thing. I prefer to not open doors to women, instead I slam it in their faces,” Yiannopoulos said.
Yiannopoulos spoke of the Catholic Church and his experience with sexual assault.
“I want to sit down with these blue-haired facial piercing feminist losers and ask what happened to them. Most of the time it’s just an uncle fiddling with them. It’s fine I get it. It’s not that bad. It’s not that bad; I’m Catholic; it happened to me, and I give great head now,” Yiannopoulos said.
He spoke of his desire to create a television show regarding college students that are concerned about social justice.
“I want to do a television show titled “˜My Social Justice Warrior,’ and I’m going to go to nice ordinary families in the Midwest and then they go to college and come back with blue hair and facial piercings. They say, “˜Mom that is so offensive; Dad that’s a microaggression.’ I want to ask if they did something with these kids, if they fiddled with them,” Yiannopoulos said.
Yiannopoulos’ final argument was that universities encourage safe spaces, trigger warnings and awareness of microaggressions.
“Universities actively encourage “˜safe space,’ “˜trigger warning,’ “˜microaggression’ horse shit, but they also encourage it by subsidizing it with your tuition fees,” said Yiannopoulos.
Many audience members laughed and cheered during Yiannopoulos talk.
“Do you have social justice warriors on your campus? Social justice in general is for mediocre, ugly people who want to take it out on the hot people,” Yiannopoulos said.
Reece Ringnald, sophomore and member of Tigers for Life, a pro-life organization on campus, contributed during the question and answer period.
“Folks, this is what free speech looks like! We’re bringing it back. We hope that you come back to Trinity, Milo. You’re always welcome here at Trinity.”
