Boston University hosted just 3 conservative speakers in 2016-17

A Campus Reform survey of official events at Boston University found that the institution hosted only three conservative speakers during the 2016-2017 academic year. 

Campus Reform examined a total of 49 speakers who were invited on campus by the university, academic departments, or student organizations, only including speakers who were officially acknowledged by the university on its events calendar.

[RELATED: CSULB hosted zero conservative speakers last year]

Many of the invited speakers were academic experts, former politicians, journalists, and members of political groups such as the Massachusetts American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and local Democratic committees.

Campus Reform researched each speaker’s political leanings and examined factors such as organizational affiliations, published writings and statements, and social media remarks. 

In total, 34 speakers were classified as liberal or left-of-center, while only three speakers could be identified as conservative. The remaining 12 lecturers who came to campus during the school year were either politically neutral or exhibited no clear ideological bias. 

The only three speakers who had clear right-of-center, conservative, or libertarian views were Townhall Editor and Fox News Contributor Katie Pavlich; former Congressman, retired Army officer, and political commentator Allen West; and AEI Fellow Dalibor Rohac.

[RELATED: Liberals account for 86% of political speakers at UVM]

Pavlich and West were both invited to speak by BU College Republicans, while Rohac was invited to lecture on Brexit by the BU International Affairs Association. 

The 35 left-of-center speakers included writer and Black Lives Matter activist Shaun King, transgender activist Mason Dunn, and former President Obama’s director of intergovernmental affairs Jerry Abramson. 

Follow the author of this article on Twitter: @ShanGolden