'Alt-right' publication writer Milo Yiannopoulos scheduled to speak at UC Berkeley, UC Davis

Milo Yiannopoulos, a technology editor at the conservative news site Breitbart and known by his Twitter handle, @Nero, near the Pulse nightclub after the mass shooting there, in Orlando, June 15, 2016 Milo Yiannopoulos, a technology editor at the conservative news site Breitbart and known by his Twitter handle, @Nero, near the Pulse nightclub after the mass shooting there, in Orlando, June 15, 2016 Image 1 of / 5 Caption Close 'Alt-right' publication writer Milo Yiannopoulos scheduled to speak at UC Berkeley, UC Davis 1 / 5 Back to Gallery

Milo Yiannopoulos, an editor for the controversial publication Breitbart, is planning a 19-stop speaking tour of American college campuses. Two of his stops are scheduled in Northern California: January 13 at UC Davis, and February 1 at UC Berkeley.

News of Yiannopoulos' appearances has drawn criticism from students at both campuses. While many conservatives herald him as a voice of reason for his politically incorrect musings and frank takes on Republican party politics, some say his vocal stances against feminism and Islam help cultivate bigotry and xenophobia, and that his writing suggests a propensity towards white nationalist ideals. Breitbart has repeatedly been linked with the "alt-right" movement, which has been described as a mix of racism, white nationalism and populism.

While at Breitbart, Yiannopoulos penned such headlines as "The Solution to Online 'Harassment' is Simple: Women Should Log Off" and "Birth Control Makes Woman Unattractive and Crazy." Such writing has fueled the backlash against former Breitbart exec Steve Bannon after he was tapped to serve as a White House adviser to President-elect Donald Trump.

The Davis College Republicans, the group organizing Yiannopoulos' appearance at UC Davis, included a disclaimer on its event page for the talk, reading, "Milo is known for discussing topics, both political or not, that may offend some people but not others." The DCR are affiliated with the broader intercollegiate California College Republicans. Neither organization responded to SFGATE's requests for comment.

In response to news of the talk, a group of anti-"alt-right" UC Davis students released a letter to be delivered to the university's administrators and the DCR. "Milo Yiannopoulos is well known for his espousal of racist, sexist, and Islamophobic hate speech targeted towards numerous members of our campus community," it reads. "The use of campus facilities and resources to host and therefore legitimize a white nationalist runs completely counter to the stated goals of the University of California and serves as a direct threat towards traditionally marginalized groups on campus."

The event at Davis is scheduled to take place on Friday, January 13 at 6:30 p.m. in one of the university's science lecture halls. The Berkeley date, scheduled for February, does not have a location as of publication time.

Yiannopoulos had planned to speak at a meet-up at the Chapel in San Francisco in March of this year, but upon learning who he was, the venue's owner Jack Knowles canceled the event, saying, "I'm not about a culture of hate."