Last week, faculty and students signed a petition to oust the local Turning Point student chapter from Rutgers University. The call followed a separate demand from the group to fire Rutgers Professor Mark Bray, the author of the "Antifa Handbook."

As is often the case, both sides are portraying themselves as defenders of free speech while seeking to silence others.

Free speech is suddenly back in vogue on many campuses. Faculty members are suddenly aghast over threats to free speech after staying entirely silent for years as conservative faculty were purged from departments and conservative speakers were cancelled on campus. Democratic leaders like Hillary Clinton, who supported censorship under the Biden administration, are even declaring themselves free speech champions.

The Rutgers controversies are a truly teachable moment on how free speech values demand more than supporting speech that you like. The test of principle is supporting the speech of those with whom you disagree, even those whom you despise.

Those of us in the free speech community are rarely called upon to defend popular speech. More often, we support the speech of those who not only hate free speech but hate us as well. Many of those we protect have worked to deny the free speech of others.

Soon after the assassination of Charlie Kirk, I wrote how the way to stand with Charlie is to stand with free speech. Charlie was the target, not the proponent of cancel campaigns.

I was disappointed, therefore, when the Rutgers TPUSA members called for the firing of Bray. I have long been a critic of Brays. Indeed, I testified........

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