More than six UCSB police officers provided security for the event Thursday. Stephen Manga / Daily Nexus
UC Santa Barbara Police are investigating an apparent threat of violence made Thursday night on Facebook targeting the “Feminism Is Cancer” event at Corwin Pavilion.
A user named Rick Chavez posted on the Facebook event page at 5:26 p.m., writing, “the course of action I take tonight will be in honor of elliot rodgers … i’m sorry mom i love you.”
Elliot Rodger was a Santa Barbara City College student who, in May 2014, killed six UCSB students in Isla Vista using a knife and several guns before ending his own life.
UCSB Police Chief Dustin Olson said during the event that the department was “looking into” the threat. Olson confirmed that the Facebook post is the only known threat directed at the event but said he could not gauge the credibility of the threat.
After the lecture, Katya Armistead, the dean of student life, said the campus is safe.
“I think the threat was to scare people because of the Milo event, but the event is over,” Armistead wrote in a text message.
Armistead said she spoke to university police at the end of the event and believes no one was detained. Andrea Estrada, a university spokesperson, later confirmed that no one had been detained.
Estrada said UCSB Police are currently investigating the credibility of the Facebook post.
“Feminism Is Cancer” is the name of a lecture by Breitbart journalist Milo Yiannopoulos, whom students have called a “provocateur.”
Updated 11:40 p.m.
[Correction: A previous version of this article said the Facebook user’s first name was “Ricky.” The user’s first name on Facebook is actually “Rick.”]
Thanks for the perspective Robert. As everyone was leaving the event I overheard conversations of people being elated they no longer have to hide their conservative views.
IV, you really need to get out of the the bubble. Designing weapons of mass destruction is OK when a Democrat is in the Whitehouse, or didn’t you get the memo? You seem to forget the guy who asked for the bomb was FDR – a Democrat. And the uni employs Democrats out of all proportion to the population. Nice try but the plural of anecdote isn’t data. And, harassed or not is no excuse to commit arson is it? Not in my book.
Given the crap that went on (and continues to to this day) in IV in 1969 and 1970, arson wasn’t an in reasonable response-the wrong target was selected though. The cops ignored the violent crime (rape and armed robbery) and the hard drug dealers in IV and went after people smoking pot and drinking. IV property management companies were notorious for screwing tenants over. They should’ve been burnt to the ground. Don’t blame Kunstler for the three police riots known as IV 1, 2 and 3.
Hey Robert, take your “morals” and get lost. You and your ilk cheat, lie and steal while hiding behind your “family values” crap. I look forward to your kind dying off-it’ll improve the gene pool. Have a nice day asshole.
How many of them were racist Nazis?