ASHE SCHOW: Protesting due process.

When author and history professor K.C. Johnson went to Ohio University to discuss due process rights for students accused of campus sexual assault, he knew what he was getting into.

Although due process is a central tenet of the American justice system, it has been attacked in recent years as an impediment to justice by those claiming to be the victims of sexual assault.

Johnson, who co-wrote the book about the false rape allegation against the Duke lacrosse team, has been trying to bring sanity back to the debate over how college campuses handle sexual assault accusations by explaining repeatedly that accused students should not be convicted based on an allegation, without the ability to defend themselves.

And that’s where the activists disagree.

Protesters showed up to his lecture with homemade signs and t-shirts that said “rape is real” (no one is saying it isn’t) and “sex without consent is always rape” (no one is saying otherwise). They stood up when he was about to speak and blocked the audience’s view of Johnson.

Shut up, they explained.