Protesters Violently Shut Down TPUSA Documentary Screening at Utah Campus
On Wednesday, students from the Turning Point USA and Young America’s Foundation (YAF) at the University of Utah hosted a screening of a documentary detailing the experience of several detransitioners, however before the event had even begun, protesters were preparing to intervene.
The two organizations on campus posted their plans to host the screening on the University’s “Campus Connect” website, where LGBTQ+ activists found it and immediately planned to protest and disrupt the chapters’ event. The documentary series students planned to watch, “Damaged: The Transing of America’s Kids,” chronicles the medical transition several adults underwent as children, expresses their immense regret, and features prominent voices in the detransition movement such as Chloe Cole.
By 6:30 p.m., Riley Clark, TPUSA’s chapter Treasurer at the University of Utah, told TPUSA that there were approximately 45 students gathered in the room that the YAF and TPUSA chapter members had reserved for the event. When chapter leadership started setting up the film, protesters began chanting, “F**k you Nazis,” “Go home fascists,” “transphobia has got to go,” and “‘YAF’ is Young Adults for Fascism.”
“Cameras and signs were shoved in our faces,” Clark told TPUSA. After approximately 20 minutes of TPUSA and YAF students being subjected to the protesters’ screams, officers entered the room and attempted to calm the growing crowd.
Clark told TPUSA that the LGBTQ+ protesters “screamed ‘Pigs’ and ‘F**k the pigs’ at the campus police,” while the security officers attempted to de-escalate the situation. Shortly after, security forcibly removed “at least two” individuals.
The University of Utah told TPUSA that no arrests were made, and stated that “The event was canceled following the protest out of an abundance of caution.”
Protesters refused to leave the room, and rather than forcibly remove the disruptive students, campus police resorted to escorting members of the TPUSA and YAF chapters out of the room, prohibiting the students from continuing their scheduled event. According to Clark, members of the two clubs were told by campus police that they “didn’t want to have to arrest people” and that it would be “easier” if the two student groups simply left. “The event was shut down, and the documentary was never played,” Clark added.
“The University of Utah allowed the protesters to win and they took away the YAF club’s right to organize and hold a peaceful documentary screening. We reserved the room for our event and we were punished for the actions of immature college students who scream and complain like children.”
Riley Clark, TPUSA chapter Treasurer and member of the YAF club at the University of Utah.
Everett Lopex, the Vice-Chairman of the YAF chapter at the school told TPUSA that the two clubs hoped to be a “beacon of hope for others on college campuses to speak up for themselves,” even in the midst of intense backlash from radically indoctrinated students on American campuses.
This article has been updated to reflect comments provided to TPUSA by the University of Utah.
