By Christopher Sharpe and Joelle Nuñez

Tallahassee, FL – On Friday, February 28, students and other groups held a protest against the arrival of right-wing pundit Charlie Kirk on FSU.

Charlie Kirk, founder of Turning Point USA, is known for his reactionary statements about LGBTQ people and Black Americans, insisting that the Civil Rights Act of 1965 was a mistake and should be repealed, while calling Martin Luther King Jr. an “awful person.” He has spoken at several universities as part of his “American Comeback” speaking tour.

In the buildup to the event, Owen Girard, president of FSU Turning Point USA, reported the Black Student Union to school administration for posting a screenshot of the protest flyer on their Instagram story. He later claimed they had been “held accountable” by the school authorities. According to BSU’s mission statement, they are “an organization at Florida State University that addresses those issues that affect African-American students in a university setting.”

The protest began at 11:30 a.m. at the Integration Statue with impassioned speeches denouncing Kirk and FSU’s administration. After this, over 100 students marched to Landis Green, where the event was being held, and barriers were quickly put up by FSUPD, Tallahassee PD, and the Florida Highway Patrol.

Justin Jordan, a leader in Tallahassee SDS said, “It is disgusting for a university that claims to care about all of its students to allow Charlie Kirk, a man who has repeatedly made his disdain for Black people and our rights to come on campus.”

Hundreds more people trickled in throughout the duration of the protest and rallied against Kirk’s presence with chants such as “Racist, sexist, anti-gay, Charlie Kirk go away!”

Despite harassment from Turning Point sympathizers including slurs, bottle-throwing and even fascist salutes, the protesters successfully disrupted the event, as many attendees claimed they couldn’t hear Kirk speak amid the uproar.

The rally was organized and attended by Tallahassee Students for a Democratic Society along with the Tallahassee Community Action Committee, Freedom Road Socialist Organization (FRSO), FSU Veggie Power, FSU Graduate Assistants United, Tallahassee Food Not Bombs, YDSA, and FL Student Power.

The event ended around 2 p.m. and the crowd gradually dispersed without incident.

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