Public opinion surveys consistently show that the #1 fear of most people — greater than drowning — is the fear of public speaking. Obviously, Ann Coulter has no such fear. While I hate to write about her for fear of giving her more publicity than I think she deserves, I have to mention the recent Ottawa debacle. It’s not that I don’t want to give credit to credible conservative commentators’, I do. George Will, for example, is both reasoned and readable — two things that Coulter is not.

In any event, a protest by hundreds of students led organizers to cancel a March 23 evening speech by the American conservative commentator at the University of Ottawa. A crowd of about 2,000 “threatening” students crowded the entrance to the hall for her speech, posing a security threat; and officials advised her to cancel.

Some blamed the bedlam on university academic vice-president Francois Houle, who had written Coulter to warn her that Canadian laws make provisions for hate speech. “Promoting hatred against any identifiable group would not only be considered inappropriate, but could in fact lead to criminal charges,” he had warned in a letter, which Coulter then leaked to the media.

Houle had written the warning because of Coulter’s propensity for using just such speech. In a recent speech in London, when answering questions from students, Coulter told a 17 year-old Muslim student to “take a camel” instead of the flying carpet she had previously suggested Muslims use for transportation. In one of her many previous interviews, she called John Edwards a “fag” and on and on.

What’s interesting about this whole debate to me is considering the intersection between hate speech and free speech in the workplace. Because this kind of public speech takes place in other forums, participants in our workplace sessions seem to think that they should have free speech in the workplace. They wonder how harassment laws and organizational policies can forbid such speech. They always seemed shocked to learn that the first amendment reads (since many have not actually read the constitution) that the “government shall make no law” limiting free speech. The courts have interpreted this to mean that the government can’t limit speech in public forums, government forums and public spaces.

Private workplaces are governed by different rules; in fact we all give up something in exchange for a paycheck. As I wrote in We Need to Talk: Difficult Conversations with Your Employee, an employer can require certain behavior in the workplace, including forbidding some kinds of speech.

Unfortunately, Ann Coulter only works for herself. I have to confess that I wish she were covered by someone else’s workplace policies — preferably mine.