Turning Point USA

Turning Point USA is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization founded on June 5, 2012 by Charlie Kirk. The organization states its mission is to "identify, educate, train, and organize students to promote fiscal responsibility, free markets and limited government." [1]

Their motto is "Big Government Sucks." They are a supporter of national conferences such as Conservative Political Action Conference, and they hold other conferences such as the Young Woman's Leadership Summit, High School Activist Conference and Young Latino's Leadership Conference.[2]

Turning Point USA lists nearly 300 chapters in colleges and high schools.[3]

In the media

Charlie Kirk has appeared on almost exclusively conservative media outlets, such as Fox News, CNBC, and Fox Business Network. He has also had many other interviews with organizations such as Truth Revolt,[4] Bloomberg Politics[5] and Opportunity Lives.[6] Volunteers will have themes every week, some of the themes include "The Healthcare Games," "Game of Loans," and "iCapitalism."[7]

Other media

Turning Point USA is also affiliated with Hypeline News, a conservative version of BuzzFeed, written and edited by students.[8]

Controversy

At Drake University, Turning Point was denied recognition as an official student organization based on student senate concerns that the organization has "a hateful record," "aggressive marketing" and "an unethical privacy concern."[9]

At Hagerstown Community College, a student's attempt to start a Turning Point group was initially blocked when the school said the organization duplicated an existing group. The student's lawsuit led to the school revising its policy on student organizations, clarifying that school funded groups will be denied if they duplicate existing groups while unfunded groups face no such restriction.[10]

First appearing on November 21st, 2016, Turning Point USA also operates a website called Professor Watchlist in order to "expose and document college professors who discriminate against conservative students, promote anti-American values, and advance leftist propaganda in the classroom."[11] The website lists academics who “promote anti-American, leftwing propaganda in the classroom” according to a blog post by Charlie Kirk.[12] Tips are accepted from the public, and over 200 professors are currently listed.[13] The website has been criticized as racist and pro-fascist, using surveillance type propaganda to manipulate ideas of truth, equality, and freedom.[14][15][16]

References

  1. ↑ "About Turning Point USA". Retrieved 2016-12-01.
  2. ↑ "Upcoming Events | Events | Turning Point USA". tpusa.com. Retrieved 2016-12-01.
  3. ↑ "Chapter Directory | Turning Point USA". tpausa.com. Retrieved 2016-12-01.
  4. ↑ "Turning Point USA Mobilizing Young Conservatives". Truth Revolt. 2014.
  5. ↑ Bykowicz, Julie (May 7, 2015). "This Boy Wonder Is Building the Conservative MoveOn.org in an Illinois Garage". Bloomberg Politics.
  6. ↑ Huizinga, Daniel (June 19, 2015). "Turning Point USA Leads the Way in Engaging and Energizing Young Conservatives".
  7. ↑ "Turning Point: Is the Youth Vote Really All That Liberal?". CBN.com (beta). Retrieved 2016-04-29.
  8. ↑ "HYPELINE - Worth the Hype | A Project of Turning Point USA". hypeline.org. Retrieved 2016-04-21.
  9. ↑ "Conservative students at Drake challenge denial as an organization". Des Moines Register. Retrieved 2016-04-27.
  10. ↑ Baker, Tamela. Herald-Mail Media, May 12, 2016. "Hagerstown Community College settles suit over political club". Accessed August 13, 2016.
  11. ↑ About, Turning Point USA, 2016, retrieved 21 November 2016
  12. ↑ Kirk, Charlie (2016-11-21). "It's time we expose professors pushing agendas in their classroom". Retrieved 2016-12-02.
  13. ↑ Sidahmed, Mazin (2016-12-02). "Professor Watchlist website elicits both fear and ridicule in US universities". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2016-12-02.
  14. ↑ Mele, Christopher (28 November 2016), Professor Watchlist Is Seen as Threat to Academic Freedom, The New York Times, retrieved 28 November 2016
  15. ↑ Schuman, Rebecca (23 November 2016), Oh Good, a “Professor Watch List”, Slate, retrieved 28 November 2016
  16. ↑ Flaherty, Colleen (22 November 2016), Being Watched, Inside Higher Ed, retrieved 28 November 2016
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