Protesters Interrupt Martin Shkreli’s Harvard Speech
Protesters disrupted a Feb.15 speech at Harvard University given by former pharmaceutical executive Martin Shkreli, repeatedly calling the speaker names before leaving the presentation.
Shkreli, a former CEO of Turing Pharmaceuticals, previously garnered widespread criticism for overseeing the price hike of a drug used to treat secondary illnesses in AIDS patients and cancer patients, according to the Independent.
The entrepreneur was invited by the Harvard Financial Analysts Club to discuss investing at an event at Harvard University on Feb. 15.
Before Shkreli got the chance to start his speech, someone set off the fire alarm, at which point police evacuated the building.
Shkreli’s speech eventually did start, only to be met with protesters shouting expletives and walking out during the middle of the presentation. Authorities reported no violence.
A Harvard student group stated that Shkreli’s guest appearance at Harvard “promotes and glorifies murderous financial practices.”
Instead of discussing his stint with Turing Pharmaceuticals, though, Shkreli’s comments focused on his experience in hedge fund management and in health care, according to CBS News.
The former CEO even ventured to suggest a solution for the high price of prescription drugs.
“Trump should start a drug company,” stated Shkreli. “I would be proud to help implement this.”
Shkreli is free after making a $5 million bail from a federal securities fraud trial in which he is pleading not guilty. The trial is reportedly unrelated to Shkreli’s tenure with Turing Pharmaceuticals.
A tentatively-scheduled joint appearance by both Shkreli and far-right journalist Milo Yiannopoulos at the University of California-Davis was canceled in the aftermath of protests.
Both Yiannopoulos and Shkreli have been met with vehement protests in the wake of their scheduled university appearances.
Sources: Independent, CBS News / Photo Credit: House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform/Wikimedia Commons