A Quillette writer was attacked during a Portland protest on Saturday, with antifa members throwing eggs and milkshakes (possibly filled with quick dry concrete) at him.
It’s totally OK though, because Andy Ngo antagonizes people on the Left!
Or at least, that’s how many commenters tried to spin it. “After relentlessly baiting and harassing Antifa, far-right provocateur Andy Ngo finally got his wish of being milkshaked,” wrote self-described “free speech activist” Nathan Bernard.
The video of what happened though, shows not a prank, but an assault.
First skirmish I’ve seen. Didn’t see how this started, but @MrAndyNgo got roughed up. pic.twitter.com/hDkfQchRhG
— Jim Ryan (@Jimryan015) June 29, 2019
I wrote about milkshaking earlier this month, as the trend of throwing milkshakes at people you dislike began in the United Kingdom and floated across the pond. What started as a juvenile, self-satisfied form of protest has become something more alarming.
Some on the Left, though, argued that the harassment of Ngo, for which he went to the ER with a brain hemorrhage, was fair recompense for Ngo’s writing. “This is bad,” tweeted Slate writer Aymann Ismail, “but he’s guilty of worse.”
I’d argue what the fear mongering he’s done against Muslims plus the work he’s done to discredit hate crimes, helped create an atmosphere of violence that vulnerable people all have to live through just for being who they are. This is bad, but he’s guilty of worse.
— Aymann Ismail (@aymanndotcom) June 30, 2019
Others played off the incident, as if chucking things at a journalist isn’t a bad idea. Then Ricky Gervais weighed in on Twitter, writing, “It’s interesting that the people who believe that throwing a milkshake in someone’s face shouldn’t be considered assault are often the same people who believe that ‘saying things’ should be.”
It’s interesting that the people who believe that throwing a milkshake in someone’s face shouldn’t be considered assault are often the same people who believe that ‘saying things’ should be.
— Ricky Gervais (@rickygervais) June 30, 2019
In 2017, psychology professor Lisa Feldman Barrett wrote for the New York Times that bullying speech is “literally a form of violence” if it causes chronic stress. Barrett wrote:
It’s no wonder that 81% of college students believe words can be a form of violence, nor that the freedom of speech is now in danger.
Liberals who downplayed Saturday’s attack or defended antifa took one of two stances: arguing either that the assault wasn’t that bad, as Gervais pointed out, or at least avoiding hypocrisy by saying that he deserved it.
The second argument is more transparent. But as right-wing figures continue to be harassed by protesters for their speech, its implications will become more sinister.
