Rutgers professor flees U.S. for Spain, claims he received death threats
A Rutgers University professor and historian says he and his family were forced to leave the country this week because of death threats.
Mark Bray is currently in Spain and spoke to CBS News New York's Adi Guajardo on Friday.
Threats started after President Trump declared Antifa a terrorist organization
For six years, Bray strolled through the Rutgers campus in New Brunswick, first as a student and then as a professor.
"I'm a historian of fascism and I understand that the way that authoritarian movements grow is by coming up with a boogeyman term like 'Antifa,'" said Bray, author of "Antifa: The Anti-Fascist Handbook." "It really started after [President] Trump's executive order declaring Antifa a quote-unquote terrorist organization."
Bray said the executive order turned him into a target.
"The pace of the death threats accelerated after the Fox News article about the Turning Point petition to have me fired," Bray said.
Rutgers chapter of Turning Point USA looks to get Bray removed
Earlier this month, the Rutgers' chapter of Turning Point USA, a political group founded by Charlie Kirk, launched the petition, seeking to remove the "Antifa-aligned professor" to protect conservative students from political violence rhetoric. It was a call to action that Bray said fueled threats and put his family's safety at risk.
"The first one that said they were gonna kill me in front of my students," Bray said.
Bray said he alerted the university, filed a police report, and left the U.S. this week in order to protect his family.
"I landed in Spain this morning after a very mysterious and, in my opinion, fishy cancellation of my flight on Wednesday," Bray said.
Michael Joseph, the president of Turning Point USA's Rutgers chapter, said his organization condemns any threats of violence, but stands by its call to remove Bray from his position as professor.
"Mark Bray is a coward, fundamentally. He thought he could hide behind his books. He thought he could hide behind his degree and radicalize kids from the safety of his classroom," Joseph said.
Rutgers issues official response
Rutgers University released a statement, saying, in part, "Rutgers is committed to upholding the rights of students and faculty to free speech and academic freedom as fundamental to our community."
Some students at the school said the threats have gone too far.
"I think it's kind of embarrassing that people are treating somebody like this just for their own opinions," student Alexandra Haines said.
"It's kind of crazy and it's scary," Andrew Manrique added.
Bray said his classes will be taught virtually going forward.
