I issued a call a while ago that the Badger Blog Alliance cover Ward Churchill's talk at Wisconsin -- Whitewater. Sean and Jib took me up on my request. Sean reports on a prayer vigil before Churchill's talk held by protestors.

For a prayer vigil this was the peppiest I ever attended. It was more of an act of defiance toward Churchill and the UW-Whitewater administration. There were cheers when Charlie Sykes and the other speakers pointed out Churchill's hateful rantings. There was a plan to walk silently to the University Center where Churchill would speak, but the College Republican who was to lead us got the crowd all riled up by having us thank everyone who put the event together. Solemnity gave way to passionate indignation.

Jib and Sean also have a few pictures of Churchill's supporters (just scroll through Jib's home page for several). As to the talk itself, the Milwaukee paper seems to indicate he spent most of the time repeating some old material defending his essay comparing 9-11 victims to little Eichmanns.

Meanwhile, David Horowitz spoke in strong terms at St. Johns. I went with Littlest Scholar, who mostly played with the card games on my cellphone. No signs were held up, but Horowitz' sharp criticism of peace studies programs as being helpful to the terrorists drew sharp questions and at least one guy issuing a loud f-bomb. An SCSU student who served in Iraq had the last comment, thanking Horowitz for the notice of peace studies and saying troops in Falluja as he was when Kerry called it "wrong war, wrong place, wrong time" were indeed demoralized by Kerry's words. Horowitz responded that it saps strength, and leads to military deaths. Aside the one rude student -- whose effenheimer was met with angry stares from many other students, including some whom I think agreed with him -- the crowd was challenged and challenging, respectful and respected.