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President Milliken urges protection of free speech and campus safety after recent violence
Summary
In his first formal remarks to the Regents, President JB Milliken called on campuses to protect both free expression and physical safety following a recent violent incident, warned about eroding public confidence in higher education, and pledged systemwide efforts to keep communities safe.
President JB Milliken used his first formal address to the Board of Regents to emphasize two priorities he said are essential to the University of California: protecting free expression and ensuring campus safety.
“Charlie Kirk’s murder was tragic and reprehensible,” Milliken said, referring to a recent act of political violence that he said demands renewed attention to campus safety. “Political violence has no place in our society or on our campuses.”
Milliken framed the remarks within a broader challenge facing higher education: a decline in public confidence tied to debates over cost, value and political polarization. He argued that taking punitive action against campus research would not solve the system’s problems and could imperil the university’s mission and the state’s future.
Milliken pledged that chancellors and UC leadership would “do everything in our power to keep our campus communities safe” while ensuring academic exchange remains unfettered. He did not announce any new safety policy or funding commitments during the open session; the board recessed to closed session.
