On Monday, Oct. 5, Turning Point USA (TPUSA) hosted an event for their Love It or Leave It Tour in the Joe Crowley Student Union (JCSU) at the University of Nevada, Reno (UNR).
Red and blue lights flashed in the JCSU ballroom as the crowd cheered in excitement, waiting for the TPUSA speakers to take the stage. The crowd chanted “USA” repeatedly as the event began.
Before the event started, TPUSA’s UNR Chapter President Aubree Gearheart read a statement from UNR.
“The University of Nevada, Reno is providing this venue in pursuit of its mission of learning, discovery and engagement, which advances the free exchange of ideas,” Gearhart read. “The views, information and opinions expressed during this event are solely those of the individuals involved and do not necessarily represent the University. The University does not endorse, guarantee or warrant the accuracy of any content presented.”
In response to the statement, an attendee in the crowd chanted “We do!” as the crowd applauded in approval.
After UNR’s disclosure, comedian Jobob Taeleifi started the event with a stand-up performance. Taeleifi showed the audience a Saturday Night Live (SNL) skit called “Mean Scary Girlfriend.” Taeleifi then joked about liberal men being weak.
“If you’re a beta male soy-boy, I think I saw a couple in the back there,” Taeleifi said, referring to students voicing their disagreement. “You’re gonna go after women who are malicious, vindictive, mean, cruel-spirited and … terrible, aka liberal women.”.
Comedian Jeff Dye followed Taeleifi, who expressed how he was excited to be at UNR because he loved Charlie Kirk and his Christian faith. Kirk previously visited UNR on Oct. 7, 2019, for the TPUSA Culture War tour.
Dye joked about climate change, saying, “Even the weather has become political.”
“We all know that Jews control the weather, can’t we just agree?” said Dye. The crowd laughed and cheered at his anti-Semitic remark.
Dye also said he tries to make his jokes historically accurate by using slurs.
“That’s how they were back then … they were like ‘r*tard this, fag*ot that,’” Dye said as the crowd laughed.
After Dye’s comments, Taeleifi introduced panelists Will Witt, Riley Gaines and Nala Ray for the Q&A.
Taeleifi encouraged audience members with opposing views to come to the front of the line, where many students stepped forward to voice their disagreement.
Noah Javier, the TPUSA president at Sierra College, asked the panelists how they can address the growing divide within conservatives, citing how right-wing personalities Candace Owens, Nicholas Fuentes and Tucker Carlson have opposed U.S. ties to Israel.
Gaines said those influencers preach “don’t vote for Trump,” which doesn’t make them true conservatives.
Another audience member asked the panelists about their position on the Cornell University sexual assault case, particularly concerning the punishment the men received and what would have happened if Jane Doe had gotten pregnant.
Witt said the case should be handled in court. Taelefi added there is no definitive conclusion about the case without all the information. He said leftists “often do this.”
Witt, Gaines and Ray all said they are pro-life. Ray also said how she wishes every day she could take back her abortion.
“Although the situation is horrific … an abortion is murder, and you have to live with that for the rest of your life,” Ray said.
As the event continued, student organizations protested outside the JCSU.
The Young Democrats of UNR (YDUNR), in partnership with Sunrise UNR and the National Organization for Women (NOW) at UNR, organized the protest in response to TPUSA’s event.
Rose Barber, president of YDUNR, said they had a permit that would’ve allowed them to protest on the JCSU plaza, but it was revoked at the last minute. Barber said she was grateful they were still able to come together on the grass outside the JCSU.
“We hope to spread bigger awareness that we are not okay with our campus being used and housing MAGA influencers that spread hate, division, bigotry and lies,” Barber said.
Barber said organizers wanted students to associate UNR with the work and character of its student body, rather than political figures who promote division.
The protest also included a march from the “Big N” outside the Knowledge Center to the JCSU; Barber shouted through a megaphone, “The people deserve justice tonight,” as students held up their signs in protest.
Barber said the protest’s timing was intentional because of early voting approaching in the coming weeks. They wanted to encourage students to register to vote and participate in the upcoming election.
Michael Keyes, a hub coordinator for Sunrise UNR, said they wanted the protest to demonstrate that students opposed TPUSA’s divisive political messaging.
“[TPUSA is] more than welcome to come and talk. But we’re also more than welcome to share our voice and call them out,” Keyes said.
Barber said the turnout was a sign that students want to become more involved in campus issues and push for change.
“We’re really glad that we had a great turnout, and I think this just goes to show that students are wanting to get involved and want change here. [They] do not want to be defined by what Turning Point is spreading,” Barber said.
