Turning Point USA’s “This Is The Turning Point” tour at the University of Mississippi attracted thousands, while a counter-event organized by the Ole Miss College Democrats featured speakers like Rep. Ro Khanna and former Sen. Heidi Heitkamp. Tennessee state Rep. Gloria Johnson, who spoke at the counter-event, criticized the TPUSA event, claiming it misled students and used distorted interpretations of the Bible and the Constitution. She discussed political violence, stating that while it should be condemned, she hesitated to place the obligation solely on university administrators.
Johnson described the current political environment as leaning towards fascism, accusing the Trump administration of ignoring the Constitution and engaging in practices like book banning and immigration enforcement that harm due process. She defended the right to protest, emphasizing that defining how to protest infringes on free speech. Additionally, Ole Miss professor James Thomas criticized TPUSA’s event as promoting fascist propaganda, asserting it contradicted free speech principles. The TPUSA event reportedly drew around 10,000 attendees, with many more turned away.
