Controversial social scientist Charles Murray to speak at Duke tonight

Controversial social scientist Charles Murray will speak at Duke University tonight.

Murray is the author of the 1994 book “The Bell Curve: Intelligence and Class Structure in American Life” in which he argues that discrepancies in intelligence between white and black Americans can be explained through environmental factors and genetics. Murray also argued that certain minority ethnic groups have lower average innate intelligence.

Murray will speak at 6 p.m. at the Doris Duke Center. Tickets are required.

Murray has been accused by his critics of being a racist and a eugenicist and using pseudoscience to justify his arguments. He’s classified by the Southern Poverty Law Center as a “white supremacist.”

The university will take additional safety precautions Tuesday evening, according to The Duke Chronicle, after Murray’s appearance at Middlebury College in Vermont was interrupted by protests earlier this month.

Murray is being hosted by Duke College Republicans and students involved in the American Enterprise Institute, a Washington, D.C.-based conservative think-tank. Murray is a fellow at AEI.

This isn’t the first time Murray has visited Duke, and the university is no stranger to controversial speakers. The event will be held at a secure location that requires tickets, The Chronicle reported.

In 2013, Murray spoke at UNC and Duke. Students at Duke walked out of his talk.

This story was originally published March 21, 2017 at 4:20 PM with the headline "Controversial social scientist Charles Murray to speak at Duke tonight."