If there’s strength in numbers, the state of the conservative movement at the University of Tennessee at Knoxville is strong.
MAGA leader Charlie Kirk’s visit to Knoxville on March 13 was a celebration for college conservatives asserting their influence at UT and campuses across the country. Students who showed up to hear Kirk told Knox News they once felt ostracized for their beliefs, even in decidedly Republican Tennessee.
“I feel like conservatives feel like they can voice their opinions now more than ever just because of the real red wave that happened in the election,” UT student Ella Williams, a freshman from Memphis, told Knox News.
The University of Tennessee Humanities amphitheater served as an arena for thousands of students to cheer on Kirk, especially as he took on challengers as part of a public debate he incorporates into all his campus appearances. Students lined the benches to hear Kirk speak and debate.
Dozens of students who disagreed with him took the bait. They walked away with varying levels of satisfaction.
The “ask me anything” event is part of the his American Comeback Tour. Kirk’s organization, Turning Point USA, is going to five other universities this year, and it’s expected to announce more soon.
Kirk’s entrance into the outdoor amphitheater resembled that of a rock star. Men in fraternity gear worked their way to the front to be near him while women in MAGA hats gushed and took videos as he passed by. Both liberal and conservative voters told Knox News before the November election they want a fighter to speak for them, and conservative students have found their champion in Kirk.
Dozens of dissenters lined up to pose questions to Kirk about topics from abortion to DEI to homelessness in Knoxville, and the audience of Kirk’s likeminded thinkers “boo’d” and heckled them as they made their points. Camps of students protesting Kirk came and went around the open lawn, though none held a candle to Kirk’s supporters.
The goal was to challenge the notion that college campuses are liberal, and UT students used Kirk, who frequently takes aim at the country’s higher education system, to do it.
“Obviously, you’re going to have people on either side that are loudly voicing their opinions, but there’s definitely a lot more conservative ideation and values than is talked about at major universities,” said Williams, the freshman from Memphis.
Student Nico Comstock, who attended the event but stood off to the side, was quick to clarify to Knox News that he doesn’t like Kirk. Comstock showed up to prove you can disagree with someone but stand up respectfully for your views.
“I think that (Kirk) has a lot of influence on campus and a lot of influence with the public,” Comstock said. “I wanted to show that there are people on campus that weren’t influenced by him that were able to show up to something, that were able to see something and listen to something like this, and not be drawn into it. To have your own convictions and stand for it.”
Emma Arns, a junior from Chicago who’s a leader in UT’s chapter of Turning Point USA, said members put hours of work into the event. Organizers spread the news through word of mouth among friends and by setting up tables in public spaces on campus.
“We want to have some discourse on campus and some debate. What people here want to see is him give his perspective and help other people come up with arguments on how to debate the left,” Arns said.
The students who debated Kirk, such as T’Lise Fuller, a global studies student from Washington, felt like it didn’t matter what arguments were made. Kirk would disagree no matter what, and the crowd would follow.
Fuller spoke to Kirk about her views on diversity, equity and inclusion. She found common ground with Kirk (and his audience) when it came to Christianity, but only when it suited their perspective, she told Knox News.
“When I brought views about faith, they clapped. However, they didn’t clap when I brought about views that Jesus sat with sinners and learned about people with different backgrounds,” Fuller said. “You clap when you know something, but are you receptive when the opposing side brings about the same facts?”
One topic of conversation hit closer to home in Knoxville than others. Savannah Smith, a junior at UT and daughter of blue-collar workers worried about President Donald Trump’s tariffs, quizzed Kirk about homelessness.
Smith works for homeless shelters in Knoxville and told Kirk most of her clients are homeless because of the city’s affordable housing crisis. Kirk told her she’s wrong, and that every homeless person has a choice.
“(If someone’s homeless) it’s because they have mental issues, they have drug issues or it’s by choice,” Kirk said.
The vast majority of Knox County’s homeless population can’t find affordable housing, according to the Knoxville Homelessness Management Information System,
“I know (Kirk’s) intention was never to have his mind changed,” Smith told Knox News. “My intention getting up there was to put (my views) in the minds of people listening and have them think, ‘Oh, I hadn’t thought of that before. Maybe I should have.'”
Allie Feinberg reports on politics for Knox News. Email her: allie.feinberg@knoxnews.com and follow her on X, formerly known as Twitter, @alliefeinberg
