Conservative activist says she was shoved during University of Michigan debate
Lizzy Benichou, a conservative Jewish activist, reported being pushed to the ground during a campus debate at the University of Michigan and said the incident will not deter her from speaking.
Conservative Jewish activist Lizzy Benichou said she was pushed to the ground while hosting an open debate at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. Benichou told a morning news program that the incident will not discourage her from speaking.
According to Benichou, a woman approached the discussion, shouted, and struck another conservative influencer, Joe Redden, with her phone before confronting Benichou. Benichou recounted that she responded by comparing the woman's behavior to restrictions on speech in Iran, and that the exchange escalated when she and fellow influencer Cam Higby questioned the woman about women's freedoms in Iran.
Benichou described the fall as hard and said she felt sore afterward. The University of Michigan Police Department confirmed that a student was taken into custody, processed and released, and that the case will be forwarded to the Washtenaw County Prosecutor’s Office for review.
Benichou said her appearance on campus was partly motivated by a desire to discuss the political positions and campaign funding of Democratic Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed with students.