San Jose State’s chapter of Turning Point USA hosted the second to last stop of a nationwide speaking tour featuring the organization’s founder.
The event took place on Thursday at the packed Christian Calvary Chapel in the Blossom Hill neighborhood.
Charlie Kirk, an Illinois conservative activist, founded and directs Turning Point USA. The group is a national conservative student organization that organizes and empowers students to promote the principles of free market and limited government, according to its website.
In the “Gen Free Tour,” Kirk highlighted First Amendment freedoms within the U.S. government.
Noel Smith, a communicative disorders senior and president of SJSU’s Turning Point USA chapter, said she appreciated Kirk’s conservative perspective.
“In a time where there’s a lot of turmoil and not much discussion, I think having Charlie Kirk and this event is a great way to have conservative voices heard,” Smith said.
San Jose was the only Northern California stop on the tour.
Calvary Chapel held nearly 1,500 attendees, many were maskless. In response to the maskless crowd, Smith said “because it’s a private property, I don’t have say over it.”
Local businesses with conservative values tabled outside the entrance of the chapel and participants were clad in purple shirts emblazoned with the “Gen Free Tour” motto.
At the start of the event, brief introductions were made by Neil Mammen from “Every Black Life Matters,” a local activist group that protects Black lives “from womb to natural death,” according to its website.
Kirk emerged soon after and was greeted by a standing ovation and applause from the crowd.
He spoke to the crowd about current topics like “woke” culture in America and coronavirus-related lockdowns.
“Did they make a difference?” Kirk asked the congregation about government lockdowns. “No!” was the collective reply.
As Kirk spoke about social issues including systemic racism, he used expressive hand motions and chanted “it doesn’t exist, it doesn’t.”
“Black Lives Matter flags, more like ‘I’m a better person than you’ flags,’ ” Kirk said during the event, referring to virtue signaling.
Virtue signaling is the sharing of one's point of view on a social or political issue, often on social media, in order to garner praise or acknowledgment from others who share that point of view, according to Dictionary.com.
He denounced corporations that adopted diversity platforms such as Delta Air Lines, saying the companies are “no longer our friends” and are “acting like Democratic Super PACs,” or Political Action Committees.
Delta Air Lines’ CEO announced the company would implement goals to promote equality in August 2020, including doubling its percentage of Black officers and directors by 2025.
Paying homage to the venue and his personal convictions, Kirk referenced his Christian faith by quoting the Bible verse Romans 12:2 “Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.”
After stating former president Donald Trump “loved the people,” the room erupted in cheers and applause.
“He had respect for the common man,” Kirk said.
He also spoke about self-censorship and tied it back to Republicans avoiding certain conversations and trying to suppress their viewpoints.
“[Liberals] want that,” Kirk said. “They want people to be afraid.”
Out of 2,000 Americans surveyed in an August 2020 Cato Institute study, a public policy research organization, 62% said the current political climate prevents them from expressing their views for fear of retaliation. The study also found 77% of people who identify as Republican are afraid to share their political opinions.
Armoni Howard, a business administration and information technology major at Western Governors University in Utah, said he experienced censorship when he attended the University of California, Santa Cruz.
“You had to sign a form that says you will censor yourself and your beliefs,” Howard said. “I thought that was a bit odd.”
Smith said she can also relate to the idea of self-censorship.
“I don’t talk about my views publicly,” Smith said. “The few times I have, I have been bashed for them, I’ve been labeled a racist, all those nasty things, which is very sad when people don’t know who you are and don’t even bother to hear your side of the story.”
