The New College of Florida, dramatically overhauled by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis early this year with the appointment of six conservative members to the board of trustees, recently invited a transgender woman to speak at the campus, reports Newsweek.
Independent journalist Erin Reed in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, shared an invitation from the liberal arts school that read, "It would be our honor to welcome you to our campus" for a discussion on "gender is a social construct."
She told Newsweek she has no plans to attend the debate.
The New College of Florida told Newsweek in a statement that the school has "committed itself to becoming a beacon for those who embrace free speech and civil discourse" under the new leadership, including launch of a public debate series.
"Our goal is to help advance thoughtful and reasoned dialogue about important issues of the day," college spokesperson Nathan March said. "We seek to include the best and brightest in specific areas in these discussions. We are now in the process of reaching out to people who want to engage in dialogue on important topics. Potential speakers are free to decline when we ask them to participate. However, we believe that society and academia will be enriched when different sides come together to respectfully, and with the intent to further our understanding of one another, exchange ideas."
Reed disagreed.
"Given what we know about New College of Florida and how it has been transformed to suit the political will of Ron DeSantis, how entire majors have been shut down and teachers forced out, and how they are actively attempting to bully LGBT students into transferring out ... as well as the criminal bathroom ban in the state ... it is not the correct time or place to do so," she told Newsweek.
Solange Reyner ✉
Solange Reyner is a writer and editor for Newsmax. She has more than 15 years in the journalism industry reporting and covering news, sports and politics.
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