Rep. Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash., has publicly urged the University of Washington to reverse its decision to cancel an on-campus speaking engagement for controversial far-left streamer Hasan Piker. Jayapal, the former chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, stated on X that she was personally engaging with the university to address the cancellation.
"As a Member of the Judiciary Committee, I have been absolutely clear that free speech is a constitutional right that we must all stand up to protect," Jayapal said in a statement. "I have been communicating my concerns about the cancellation of the Hasan Piker event directly to the University, and they have informed me that they are doing an internal review to ensure this never happens again."
Piker himself posted on X that the event's cancellation was due to his criticisms of Israel. He suggested that conservative groups were preventing Democrats from using the situation to criticize the Republican Party's stance on cancel culture.
The University of Washington issued a statement explaining that the event was canceled because "the process for organizing this event did not meet the necessary level of rigor for University-hosted events."
The decision drew criticism from both sides of the political spectrum. Andrew Kolvet of Turning Point USA echoed Jayapal's sentiment, stating, "Let the radical Mao loving communist Hasan Piker speak... It’s wrong. Let him speak. Let conservatives speak. Peacefully." Kolvet added that universities often use similar administrative excuses to cancel events for conservative groups.
Piker, a popular streamer, has a history of making provocative statements. In 2019, he remarked that "America deserved 9/11" due to its foreign policy, a statement he later clarified on "The Young Turks" by saying his advocacy is against violence and that his comment was misconstrued. He also faced backlash from the Anti-Defamation League for referring to Hamas as a "lesser evil" compared to Israel and stated at a Yale University event in April 2026 that "the fall of the USSR was one of the greatest catastrophes of the 20th century."
Piker's past remarks have resurfaced as he has campaigned with socialist-aligned candidates, including Michigan Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed and former Wisconsin gubernatorial candidate Francesca Hong. El-Sayed has previously distanced himself from Piker's controversial statements, particularly his remarks about 9/11, while also criticizing "cancel culture."