White nationalist Richard Spencer will speak at the University of Florida - and UF is spending $500,000 on police presence to keep students safe

Jim Bourg/Reuters

The University of Florida is bracing for protests ahead of a scheduled speech Thursday by white nationalist leader Richard Spencer.

• The University of Florida expects to spend $500,000 on security for a speech by white nationalist Richard Spencer.
• Spencer, a far-right figure, attended the Charlottesville protests, and pledged to speak at other colleges.
• There will be more police on the UF campus than in any other time in the school's history.

The University of Florida is bracing for protests ahead of a scheduled speech Thursday by white nationalist leader Richard Spencer. 

Spencer has made a name for himself in the alt-right community, espousing racist views on college campuses and on a website he created in 2010 called altright.com.

It is his first event since he and other white supremacists participated in the "Unite the Right" rally in Charlottesville, Virginia that turned deadly. Since that rally, Spencer has attempted to host speeches on other campuses. At least one, The University of Texas-Austin, canceled his speech citing safety issues.

Earlier in October, Spencer and other white supremacists returned to Charlottesville, carrying tiki torches and chanting "you will not replace us" and "we will be back." 

While UF originally cancelled Spencer's event, the school eventually allowed him to rent out space and deliver a speech. UF President Kent Fuchs said that there will be more police on campus than at any other time in the school's history, according to CNN. 

Florida governor Rick Scott has declared a state of emergency ahead of the speech, "as an additional step to ensure that the University of Florida and the entire community is prepared so everyone can stay safe," he said in a statement.

UF expects to spend $500,000 on security for the event. Images on Twitter show the police presence on campus.