Kelly Booed Off Stage During Talk
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A small but vocal group of protesters Tuesday shouted down New York City Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly at Brown University , leading administrators to cancel his lecture after he delivered only a few words.
The backlash to Mr. Kelly’s appearance at the Taubman Center for Public Policy has been brewing for days—several student groups and Providence residents attempted to get the university to rescind Mr. Kelly’s invitation, which was denied.
Mr. Kelly has been heralded for bringing crime in New York City to the lowest point in more than 50 years, but he has also been in the spotlight after a federal judge ruled that the NYPD’s stop-and-frisk practice was unconstitutional because it disproportionately targets minorities.
Mr. Kelly was scheduled to give a short lecture followed by a question and answer session. The speech was intended to cover the NYPD’s approach to policing and stop-and-frisk.
Students booed Mr. Kelly as he was introduced by Marion Orr, the director of the Taubman Center, and began loudly talking over him when he began to speak.
At one point, Mr. Kelly asked: “Are we ready to go forward?”
The protesting continued—some students shouted about rights being violated—and after about 30 minutes administrators canceled the lecture.
“The conduct of disruptive members of the audience is indefensible and an affront both to civil democratic society,” Brown University President Christina Paxson said in a news release.
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