Texas Christian University denied a request to host a Turning Point USA event featuring detransitioner Chloe Cole, sparking backlash from elected officials and reigniting debate over free speech on campus.
“The first college to actually thank me for speaking on their campus instead of cancelling me like @TCU just did! Christian colleges (and otherwise) need to step up to keep democracy and free speech alive in the wake of Charlie Kirk’s assassination,” Cole wrote on X.
Cole told The Dallas Express that TCU made the student chapter “jump through arbitrary hoops for awhile and finally denied it outright yesterday.” She added that the event will now be held at Birchman Baptist Church instead of on campus.
The decision immediately drew backlash from state and federal officials.
“This doesn’t look like free speech to me. I’m going to look into this,” Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton said.
“This decision to silence Chloe Cole and cancel a TPUSA event is an outrageous betrayal of free speech. Blocking students from hosting speakers on college campuses undermines the academic duty to foster open dialogue and the free exchange of ideas,” Congressman Brandon Gill told The Dallas Express.
TCU disputed the “cancellation” claim, insisting the October 7 venue was never booked.
“On September 18, TCU successfully hosted a TPUSA event to honor the life of Charlie Kirk, who had previously spoken on TCU’s campus to students and the community. Separate from this event, an outside party, not affiliated with TCU, invited an external speaker to appear on our campus on Oct. 7. The student chapter of TPUSA then requested that TCU host the Oct. 7 event for 700 to 1,000 people. The requested space was already booked with another student event. We explored options and notified the group on Sept. 25 that a secure space was not available given the short notice, but we offered to find another date or space for the event. TCU never cancelled this event as it was never booked,” a university spokesperson told The Dallas Express.
Despite the university’s clarification, critics argue the denial reflects a broader pattern of hostility toward conservative groups on college campuses.
A Turning Point USA staffer alleged on X that TCU has resisted the chapter for years.
“When our students tried to start the TCU chapter years ago, the administration lied and said we never submitted a membership roster. Luckily, we had photocopies of everything and recorded the conversation. When we told admin we had this, they basically threw up their hands and said, ‘OH WE WERE JUST KIDDING, you’re approved.’ So yeah, this has been going on for years,” Ben Larrabee wrote on X.