Mercer, who has long backed Breitbart and Yiannopoulos, said he hoped Yiannopoulos’ abrasive style and views outside the political mainstream would help people think for themselves. However, as Yiannopoulos moved closer to neo-Nazi and other racist groups, he now regrets supporting him.
“Without individuals thinking for themselves, society as a whole will struggle to distinguish the signal of truth from the correlated news of conformity,” Mercer said in a statement.
“I supported Milo Yiannopoulos in the hope and expectation that his expression of views contrary to the social mainstream and his spotlighting of the hypocrisy of those who would close down free speech in the name of political correctness would promote the type of open debate and freedom of thought that is being throttled on many American college campuses today.”
“But, in my opinion, actions of and statements by Mr. Yiannopoulos have caused pain and divisiveness undermining the open and productive discourse that I had hoped to facilitate. I was mistaken to have supported him, and for several weeks have been in the process of severing all ties with him.”
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