One of America’s great minds is coming to New Zealand.

Dr Cornel West has been fighting for what he calls justice in America for decades.

He’s been fighting for race equality, and is renowned philosopher and intellectual.

He’s also a professor of the practice of public philosophy at Harvard University.

Now he’s bringing his thought-provoking views to New Zealand in a talk this Friday with Douglas Murray.

Murray’s politics are right wing, while Dr West is known as ‘far left’.

Dr West talked with Mike Hosking about the difficulties around free speech in modern times.

He says that people need to be open to a variety of different voices and opinions.

“Free speech is very crucial, because if you cut off one it’s easy for somebody else to cut you off.

At the same time, there is such a thing as hate speech. The interest is not trying to generate deeper dialogue and just trying to demonise and trash someone else.”

He says that universities are about quality dialogue and should not let just anyone talk.