In advance of Ben Shapiro's highly-anticipated lecture at the University of California, Berkeley on Thursday night, protesters dug deep into the elementary school playbook and used chalk to express their feelings about his appearance.

According to Amy Lutz, program officer at Young America's Foundation, which is the national organization sponsoring and organizing Shapiro's campus lecture (and my previous employer), chalk-wielding anti-Shapiro activists left some choice messages about the event on a campus walkway. Images posted to Twitter by Lutz on Thursday show the chalkings included such thoughtful messages as "‘Free Speech' Kills," "Fuck The Police," and "Fuck Ben Shapiro."

It's somewhat ironic these chalk warriors sullied the very ground upon which the free speech movement of the 1960s sprung forth with sentiments of contempt for that principle.

Anticipating potentially-violent protests, the university implemented extensive security measures in the hopes of maintaining peace on Thursday. Let's pray that everyone stays safe.

Emily Jashinsky is a commentary writer for the Washington Examiner.