When panels panic

Cancelled campus events reveal universities' unease with controversial debates.

Universities have a duty to uphold freedom of speech about even the most controversial topics. Not only is the spirit of scholarship, teaching and research, it is also a legal responsibility. But they also have a legal duty to protect the people who pass through their doors.

Increasingly these duties are conflicting. We look at three recent cases when university authorities have cancelled events due to take place on campus and the lessons they offer university leaders.