The Berkeley College Republicans, along with the Tennessee-based Young America's Foundation, a conservative group, later filed suit against UC Berkeley in federal court in San Francisco, accusing the school of violating the First Amendment by discriminating against speakers with conservative views.
In a Dec. 2018 settlement with both groups, Cal agreed to modify its procedures for handling "major events" and to no longer charge "security" fees for certain activities, including lectures and speeches. The university also paid $70,000 to cover the groups' legal costs.
"We just hope that Ms. Coulter is able to speak, unlike what happened two years ago," Reddy said. He said the Berkeley College Republicans worked closely with campus police and Cal Performances in preparation for this event. All attendees will be required to pass through metal detectors and will only be allowed to take certain items inside, he said. Police also plan to set up barricades outside the event.
"We believe these policies will help the event go smoother than some others in the past,” Reddy added, noting that his group has already received some threats. "A disruption would be very unfavorable to our interests."
A number of leftist groups, comprised of both students and off-campus activists, remain hell-bent on shutting the event down.
"We're calling on people from all around the Bay Area to come to Berkeley tomorrow to shut down Ann Coulter and the College Republicans speaking event," said Hoku Jeffrey, an organizer for the group By Any Means Necessary.
"The Coulter event is simply an invitation for white supremacist violence to happen on the Berkeley campus and in the surrounding community, and we don't we don't accept that at all."