Controversial provocateur Milo Yiannopolous will deliver the keynote speech at this year’s Conservative Political Action Conference, the influential gathering of thousands of Republican, conservative and libertarian activists and policymakers in Washington DC — not all of whom are crazy about the idea.
Yiannopolous is fresh off a (literally) flaming kerfuffle at the University of California Berkeley, where protesters determined they would rather burn down their own campus than allow him to speak on political correctness and the corrupting nature of identity politics. His book, Dangerous, shot up to #1 on Amazon, after progressives on social media announced that they would boycott his publisher for giving him a book deal.
Milo says his speech at CPACs Reagan Dinner, will be a retrospective on his “experiences in America battling feminists, Black Lives Matter, the media, professors and the entertainment industry” during his so-called “Dangerous Faggot” college tour.
Some conservatives who had planned to attend the gathering — and the pricey Reagan dinner, which is an additional $100 per plate on top of the cost of CPAC admission — weren’t entirely happy that Milo would be filling the keynote slot. The American Conservative Union, which hosts CPAC, had originally announced that Michael Reagan, the adopted son of the former President, was the event’s keynote.
ACU President Matt Schlapp defended the change, saying that Milo, while not technically a grassroots conservative leader in the traditional sense, is on the front lines of a very important battle.
“An epidemic of speech suppression has taken over college campuses,” Schlapp told media in a statement. “Milo has exposed their liberal thuggery and we think free speech includes hearing Milo’s important perspective.”
Not everyone is buying the explanation. CPAC has famously excluded organizations, including pro-gay marriage non-profit groups, for failing to ascribe to ACU’s own core agenda, which is socially conservative.
The ACU itself noted that it is prepared for both protests and controversy, and that inviting Milo Yiannopolous, who is identified with the “alt-right,” is in no way an endorsement of all the movement’s beliefs.
“Each will use his or her individual judgement as to the worthiness of each speaker, including Milo. ACU has publicly taken on racism and the alt-right and will continue to do so aggressively, like ACU’s founders before us.
The CPAC agenda of speakers also includes Senator Ted Cruz, Indiana governor turned Vice President Mike Pence, and a special guest appearance by President Donald Trump. Previous keynote speakers have included Glenn Beck and former Rep. Allen West.
