Knowles has become a controversial figure for his actions and political views, which includes public opposition of gay marriage, his belief that transgender people’s existence is a delusion that must be eradicated, and arguing colonization and expansion of the American Empire as something justified and noble. Knowles gave a speech in the Iowa Memorial Union entitled, “We are so Back: How the Libs Lost Everything”.  

The IMU functions within the university as being the center of campus life, with them describing it as, “Often the place where the university makes its first impression on potential students, faculty, and staff.” One of the five core values stated of the IMU is inclusion, “Affirming and celebrating all backgrounds and personal identities through inclusive and equitable policies, programs, services, and spaces.”

University of Iowa students, staff, and Iowa City community members gathered outside the IMU to protest Michael Knowles speech taking place within the building. For many of the protesters this was another episode in a long series of right wing influencers hosted and sponsored on university grounds. The election, the war in Gaza, and the general assault on LGBT rights has brought the student body’s divisions to the forefront and forced the university to question what does it mean to be tolerant.

“It seems to be a pretty big event, and it seems a little questionable to me,” said a protester present at the speech, “you know, hosting a homophobic, transphobic person at a university which like has policies ostensibly protecting gay and trans people.”

Another protester stated, “I think that inviting him and giving him this much of a platform 一 I think there is a difference than if he just came into the park and like, put some stuff up. But he’s being hosted in a university building with two policemen in the lobby providing protection. They clearly have this organized as a major event inside the IMU. It’s kind of what the entire building seems to be centered around right now, which is a bit, not just inviting, but explicitly platforming, and I think that’s like a fallacy of equality.” 

Those in attendance made efforts to affirm individual identities and made a point of stressing how the speakers’ and university’s actions have affected the mental health and sense of safety on campus for queer students. “The falling on free speech thing doesn’t really carry water anymore, because the last time they invited Matt Walsh or whatnot, there was conflict. It seems like they’re just spending more and more money on this extra police. So yeah, they’re 100% at fault,” one student commented on the university’s involvement, “I understand free speech but that dude can get that on the Daily Wire so that’s his free speech, but he need not come here. I understand why the YAF brought him here, but take him to some other venue because this is state sponsored. So, how are you going to feel safe in this school? Because it feels like, to our trans community, it feels like they hate me, and at best they’re indifferent to our voice.”

The overall well-being of transgender students was also a major concern of protestors, especially in light of the recent presidential election. As one protestor said, “Our trans sisters and brothers are scared right now, and this is like throwing fuel on the fire. We want to meet the fascists at the gate and let them know that we don’t give a shit about your president. We’re here to take care of our people.”

The two groups were sandwiched in between a 24-hour fundraising event for the University of Iowa’s largest student organization, Dance Marathon, which added to the crowds. Many of the passersby approached by KRUI had no knowledge of the YAF’s event and were simply trying to use the building to attend the Dance Marathon fundraiser or were there for academic purposes. 

However, a few onlookers contributed their opinion of the event. Many of them viewed the protest in a positive light, with one saying, “I think they’ve done a really good job organizing, and I know there’s a lot of different voices on campus, so it’s nice that people on more of the progressive side can have their voice heard and the conservatives can be inside and listen to a speaker. It’s awesome. It should double in size.”

Protestors were especially on edge given the large police presence inside and outside the IMU as on October 7th of 2023, peaceful protestors were arrested after demonstrating against a different anti-trans speaker at the IMU. They were charged with either disorderly conduct or interference with official acts. Those protestors were detained a month later in November of 2023. None of the participants were arrested at the protest and no property was damaged, but according to those present, Johnson County police officers reportedly pushed, grabbed, and behaved aggressively towards them.

Through this process, protestors learned that the UIPD and Johnson County Sherriff’s Office have both been involved in monitoring protests. UIPD has installed cameras that pan, tilt, and zoom around campus. This is along with monitoring social media accounts, searching specific terms leading up to events on platforms, and analyzing search results based on posts’ geolocation. It has been reported that UIPD tracks protestors based on their face, build, clothing, walk, temporary injuries, and their cars as they are leaving protests. That is why during the November 11th protest, a majority of protestors wore nondescript clothing, face masks, said to put their phones into airplane mode, and parked away from the IMU. It was also requested that no photos be taken that could identify protestors based on their faces.

Along with these precautions, many protestors were weary of stepping away from the corner section of the IMU due to the arrests last year that came from people blocking the intersection of Jefferson and Madison. This comes after the Iowa state government passed the “Back the Blue” law in 2021 which strengthened qualified immunity for police officers, banned common protest tactics like obstructing a street, and increased penalties for other protest actions. UIPD officers also came out to the crowd of protestors handing out “Free Speech at Iowa” cards that labeled what things protestors could and could not do.

Inside the IMU, Michael Knowles’ talk focused mainly on the criticism of transgender people and progressivism in western society. His traditional views on gender were on full display stating that women should grow out their hair so that their pronouns and identity are apparent. He also said that, “The transgender issue is not chiefly about women’s sports. We want that too, it’s a matter of justice. But most people don’t actually care that much about women’s sports. The trans issue is not even chiefly about protecting children, it is about the liberal elite trying to castrate little kids.”

After Knowles’ talk was over, KRUI staffers asked individuals what they thought of the event. One pair of event attendees said, “We’re both independent voters so we went and checked out the event inside and it was kind of what you would expect for something like this. All he was saying was kind of recycled talking points.”

Another attendee said, “I thought he was great, I thought he had good opinions. I don’t necessarily attend the University of Iowa but I’m not planning on it either, especially because of the kind of liberal ideologies that are here. I appreciated him coming out and sharing his opinion. I mean, that’s what press is about, it’s about people being able to share their opinions openly and not get demeaned for doing so.”

Debates around DEI, trans rights, and the general paradox of tolerance will likely continue to unfold on campus as the university juggles the safety and interests of its students, while attempting to maneuver and adapt to legislation that’s increasingly antagonistic towards academia’s discretion. “I think that there is a general pattern of ‘if you are tolerant, you have to tolerate me being hateful’,” said one demonstrator attending the protest, “that’s kind of what the university seems to have gone with with hosting these kinds of people, and it’s philosophical nonsense.”

This article was written with aid from Amanda Moy, Julia Wilson, and Claire Peery.

The post Michael Knowles and a Case Study of Tolerating Intolerance appeared first on KRUI Radio.

Many have identified an alarming trend in the local and state government: authoritarianism in Iowa. What many thought to be relegated to distant, dystopian countries has found its way here. This has been after numerous laws and legislation have been passed that target minority groups, including transgender people, and punish people for their dissent. 

Lawyer, and Iowa City city council member Laura Bergus, along with V Fixmer-Oraiz, a Johnson County supervisor, both wrote on this direction that the Iowa government has been taken in an op-ed published in the Little Village magazine. There, they talked about Iowa’s Back the Blue Laws, and how they gave police officers more immunity, while limiting the power of protesters. The laws made it criminal to engage in common protest activities like blocking the street. 

These laws came into effect when seven protesters were charged at Chloe Cole’s speech in the Iowa Memorial Union in October of 2023. All seven identified as trans. This targeting of trans people both in the legislator and on the streets, along with the laws designed to quell dissent has shown the Iowa government’s more restrictive and authoritarian actions. 

In this interview, Laura Bergus elaborates on the authoritarian practices of the Iowa government. She points out the signs of authoritarianism in other places and correlates them to what is happening in the state. She also details the goals of recent legislation, why trans people are being targeted, and some steps to be taken to push back against this trend. 

The post Interview: Laura Bergus on Authoritarianism in Iowa appeared first on KRUI Radio.

During the lecture, Walsh espoused plenty of hate speech and misinformation towards transgender and queer people, which included intentionally deadnaming people, denying the existence of trans people, and calling for an end to the “dangerous transgender ideology”, amassing cheers while doing so. This was along with an uptick in expressions of anti-trans sentiments online and from people in the university in the weeks leading up to the event. 

This is what led to everyone gathering in that intersection. The protesters wanted to exhibit their anger and show that they weren’t going to stand for an event like this. Whether the individuals were there to protect themselves or their friends and family, they wanted to be heard. From this position, they could show these sentiments to all those who attended the lecture and now had their path blocked, along with those in power at the university, and the Iowa City community in general. They wanted to make sure that their frustrations were heard, and that an event like this that platformed transphobia would never happen in their community again. 

Students protesting outside the IMU after Matt Walsh’s lecture. Image via John Glab

Recently, on a mid-October evening, a nearly identical scene was reflected in the dusk air. This time, after blocking the entrances to the IMU, the group of protesters formed a blockade at the intersection, with individuals continuously circling the cross walk. The reasoning for this demonstration was nearly identical. The IMU hosted another speaker to espouse transphobic rhetoric and misinformation. Here, Chloe Cole, a teenaged detransitioner, was brought in to speak in what was not as large of an affair. She does not have as big of a name as Walsh’s, and her overall viewpoints aren’t as staunchly transphobic. Often it seems like she is being paraded around by other powerful conservative figureheads, where they are manipulating her to advance their anti-trans objectives. 

Despite this, her speech and presence though were still harmful. Her main talking point that audience members rallied around was her opposition to providing gender affirming care for trans people under the age of 18. Many highlight the importance of having this form of medical care to be available to everyone, citing people’s personal experiences of feeling more comfortable in their bodies, and improving their mental health. This was still another attack on Iowa City’s transgender and queer community. Going through the same things again six months later, their anger here was even more palpable, because after they demanded that something like this would never happen again, it happened again.  

With the content of these lectures, it is undeniable that they cross over into the realm of hate speech. This encourages equally hateful actions towards the group of people it is targeting. That is the whole point behind why someone would say hateful sentiments. They do it to convince others to adopt these ideals, and then carry them out in their daily lives. This of course spells danger for the transgender community that these lectures have targeted, where trans individuals experience more harassment, and potentially exposes them to violent acts. 

So, why did another one of these lectures happen again? If it was just an open platform for people to spout hate speech, and so much of the student body was against it, why would another event like this happen again? To answer that we can look at the student organization hosting both events, the University of Iowa chapter of the Young Americans for Freedom. As a student organization, the YAF has the ability to apply for a space within the IMU to host an event. The process of inviting a guest speaker, even if they are there to discuss political topics and motives, is also permitted. Inviting a guest speaker adds more steps to the planning process with university guidelines requiring that an application for the speaker be sent through for review. The process for Cole’s lecture took about three months’ worth of planning.  

Cole’s lecture. Image via KGAN

Since these events are so problematic, why wouldn’t the university deny them? The main claim that is used is the commitment to free speech principles. As a public institution, the University of Iowa is legally required to allow any student organization, with any political belief to have a platform to speak. Allowing the YAF to host an event that expresses the organization’s thoughts and opinions on certain topics does uphold free speech. There is also a clause in the guidelines that requires an open question and answer section during a hosted lecture if the speaker is deemed controversial. This requirement was strategically worked around. In Walsh’s Q&A section, anyone with a dissenting viewpoint was booed profusely so that they could never get out any of their points. During Cole’s Q&A section, the question that one of our reporters had wanted to ask was turned down by Cole’s team. This outrightly defies the free speech principles that give this event any credibility to exist.  

Recently, about a month after the protest, Iowa City and campus police arrested six protesters who were involved in the protest of Cole’s lecture on serious misdemeanors for the obstruction of official acts. They were identified through video surveillance, and photos taken on the day of the protest. All six protesters were of trans identity. Even though there were many other cisgender protesters there doing the same thing, and the worst offense committed was encouraging others to block people from entering the IMU, these six were specifically arrested. This reads clearly as an attempt by city and campus officials to silence those among the transgender community. Making these arrests strives to strike fear in anyone else who would come out and protest another event like this. It tries to deny those of their right to protest, which goes against their free speech principles.  

With these examples, there seems to be a double standard in how the university handles free speech. Here, protecting free speech principles doesn’t seem to be the main priority of the university for allowing these lectures to be hosted. As with most things, their main priority seems to be money. We at KRUI spoke with a lobbyist, who asked to remain anonymous, that operates within the Iowa government, and University of Iowa. They gave us a rundown of how the YAF is able to host these events, and the money involved with them. 

The YAF, and most right-wing student organizations on campus, all operate in a similar way. The YAF at the University of Iowa itself is just a chapter of the larger national Young Americans for Freedom organization, which acts as an interest group. The organization states its goal is to help promote conservativism. The national organization itself receives money through donations from various wealthy individuals, foundations, and corporations. The YAF does not disclose these donations, but many have been recorded to include several million dollars going to the organization at a time. The national organization then distributes the funds procured from donations to its various member chapters in universities across the county to carry out its goal of promoting conservative goals university campuses.

Police clashing with protesters during Cole’s Lecture. Image via John Glab

The YAF has realized that the best way to make an impact on campus is by being provocative. This is why they invite controversial speakers to come to campus, claiming that it’s in the name of free speech. They do this whether or not they actually fully agree with what those speakers have to say. The YAF fans these flames of outrage to burn as strong as possible. Specifically for the Cole lecture, the YAF brought on Iowa City and campus police from the beginning of organizing the event. They knew that people would protest the event, and if the police were there at the protest, it would raise tensions even further and escalate things.  

Their goal was to create a sensationalist atmosphere, and further polarize the community. Part of it is them wanting to fabricate and push a narrative that conservatives are an oppressed group on university campuses. They take these images of people protesting their event and police clashing to post on social media to further this narrative. Through lobbyists like the one we talked to, the YAF goes to their constituents in Republican, right-wing state representatives. They make the argument to them that the “woke” University of Iowa is not sufficiently protecting the free speech of its right-wing students, hence discriminating against them in favoring more progressive, pro-LGBT views. 

From here, the YAF can rely on these right-wing state representatives to pressure the University of Iowa to allow these events to happen, and to quell the backlash that occurs as a result of the transphobic lectures. The state representatives exert pressure through the state budget, which is voted on every year, and includes how much the University of Iowa receives in state appropriations. Since it is a public university, it is heavily dependent on state spending accrued from taxes to continue to operate year after year.  

Graph via the University of Iowa

Looking at the university’s general education fund, which doesn’t include income sources from non-educational services the university carries out like athletic games and school stores, it brought in $218 million in the 2023-24 fiscal year from state appropriations. This makes up 27% of that budget, an extremely significant amount of that is decided by people in the government. What legislators want is for the university to favor groups like the YAF, so they can push these transphobic and homophobic narratives.  

The University of Iowa is compelled to appease the opinions of these right-wing state legislators, or they would risk losing this major source of funding. This also explains why there were so many Republican state representatives at the Chloe Cole lecture. Specifically at that event, we at KRUI talked with, and got the names of representatives Dean Fisher, Mark Cisneros, and Brad Sherman, all of whom are Republican. Many of these representatives’ stances are staunchly against transgender people, which falls under Governor Reynolds’ administration’s ideals. Fisher, when asked by one of our staff members about his stance on gender affirming care, and if he would propose legislation related to the issue responded, “Your questions reflect the fact that you are very biased, and have little understanding of the issue. Apparently, you didn’t listen to Chloe’s speech.”  

These are some of the representatives who have control over the University of Iowa’s funding. The university would not function without this money, and while state legislators would never outrightly take it all away, they could very easily cut back on it. Yet, the university uses up all of its monetary resources, so it can function to its greatest ability. A reduction in funding would mean a reduction in the quality of education that its students are receiving.

Image via Casper Bakker

State legislators are manipulating the University of Iowa with their own funding. It is in each community in the state’s best interest that this money goes to the university, so it can provide an education for its residents. However, this money comes with strings attached. Strings that can be pulled by those in power. This comes as over the past year, many laws have been put in place that attack the trans and LGBT communities.  

These anti-trans bills include Senate Files 482 and 538, which ban trans youth from using the bathroom that corresponds with their gender, and prohibit gender affirming care for those under the age of 18. There is also Senate File 496, which has banned many books from public school libraries that mention and discuss have LGBT related themes, and forbids teachers from bringing up these topics in teachings. These laws look to silence and undermine these people by erasing any recognition of LGBT people in the Iowa school systems. 

Most recently, the Board of Regents set policies that encouraged rolling back diversity equity and inclusion policies for the universities it oversees. Regent David Barker cited concerns over the rapid growth of DEI programs as a reason to look into them, saying, “any bureaucracy that grows rapidly needs a close look from time to time.” This puts DEI programs, institutions that expand students’ worldview, and provide support for minority and marginalized people, in jeopardy. Many argue that this is a further attempt to continue to restrict diverse viewpoints within education systems in the state of Iowa. 

The motivations of the Board of Regents are perhaps very similar to those of state legislators. The Board of Regents oversees the operation of the public universities within Iowa: The University of Northern Iowa, Iowa State University, and the University of Iowa. They decide things like the cost of tuition, budgets and operational guidelines. The board consists of nine members from varying backgrounds, where one of them is required to be a recent student member. Thes members are all appointed by the governor, and then confirmed by the Iowa Senate. A stipulation of the board is that no more than five members can be of the same political party affiliation.  

Of these members, only one, Nancy Dunkel, is affiliated as a Democrat. Four of them, Sherry Bates, Jim Lindenmayer, JC Risewick, and Abby Crow are registered as independents. The remaining four, Michael Richards, Greta Rouse, David Barker, and Robert Cramer are all affiliated as Republican. However, this doesn’t mean that views are evenly split. Though registered among the Board of Regents with no party affiliation, recently appointed JC Risewick has donated thousands of dollars to Kim Reynolds’ election campaigns. Along with this, regent Rouse worked as Reynolds’ communications director, and Barker was appointed by Reynolds to the Executive Council of the Empower Rural Iowa Initiative.  

Protesters marching after Cole’s lecture. Image via Casper Bakker

This not only gives the Board of Regents a Republican majority, but also gives a position to several members who will make decisions according to Reynolds’ interests. Those interests as of recently have been to violate the lives of, and deny the right to exist for transgender people. What we have seen is an increase of these bigoted policies seeping more and more into the daily lives of people through educational institutions. The Iowa government has been flexing its power over these educational institutions, like the University of Iowa, so they follow suit with their transphobic incentives 

So far, the University of Iowa hasn’t tried to fight back, but they have a very limited range to do so with state representatives controlling their funding. This limits the University of Iowa’s ability to provide a safe and tolerant environment for all its students, and the people in the greater community that it fosters. With this manipulation of governmental power, the University of Iowa will continue to degrade as an open and welcoming space for all. This bigotry that is corrupting university policies and attacking the transgender community within its campus is actively putting these people in danger. 

This article was written with aid from John Glab, and field work from Amman Hassan.

The post The Uses of Money and Power That Goes Into Anti-Trans Lectures On Campus appeared first on KRUI Radio.

It also follows the last major event hosted in April by the university and the YAF, where they brought in staunchly anti-trans, and anti-LGBT commentator Matt Walsh to speak in the main ballroom of the IMU. The event was met with heavy backlash and a massive protest organized by the student body. Many have also expressed a concern over growing hate speech against the trans and queer communities in Iowa City. These concerns, along with the frustration and anguish with healthcare being stripped away, and this being a repeat offense, all sparked another protest by the student body. 

The protest began in the south lobby of the IMU. From there they had moved up to the third floor where the Black Box theater is to try to disrupt the event. Event organizers had closed off the doors to stop the protesters from getting through. Protesters chanted out their frustrations before moving back down and outside. The group decided to deploy the same tactics as the event planners and organized themselves to barricade every entrance of the IMU to stop people from attending the event.  

Image via Casper Bakker

Outside, groups had stood in the way of the doors of the IMU to stop attendees from entering. While impeding the doors, the protesters continued to yell out their frustrations. One of the protesters Emerson, said that the protest was good to let trans people “know that they were supported.” They had also said “the rhetoric being hosted is deeply transphobic.” Emerson themselves is a graduate student and teacher’s assistant who began transitioning through the University Clinics. They also expressed their worries over how lectures like these will be used to take away that care from trans people. 

Many other students exclaimed their frustrations with the university for allowing another event like this to happen. They stated how lectures like this are created only as a way to spread hateful rhetoric, and anti-trans sentiments. Many were made to feel unsafe and uncomfortable in the days leading up to the event. Some had also reported forms of hate speech spreading on social media. Another protester, Kelsie, had said how the university tries to make it a discussion, but that there shouldn’t be a discussion when “one side is fighting for their autonomy and rights, while the other side is fighting to eliminate us.” 

Eventually, police moved to break up the barricade at the main entrance of the IMU. They had done so by threatening to make arrests if people didn’t move and had pushed some people away. Two officers were stationed at the main entrance guarding the doors, allowing attendees to enter. IMU Assistant Events Director John Cory, who was standing on the roadside, described how the YAF had brought on the police into the events planning from the beginning. Protesters still clustered around either side of the doors and continued to chant in the face of those going to see Cole. 

Image via Casper Bakker

The attendees of Cole’s speech numbered around 150, and were a fairly diverse mix of students, press, state representatives, and Iowa City residents. Among those attending were many state legislators. The talk lasted over an hour, where she talked about her transitioning from female to male, and then detransitioning. It also included a lengthy Q&A session in which she addressed questions from both supporters and critics. 

Perhaps the most immediate and jarring aspect of the event was the difference between Cole’s rhetoric and the values espoused by the organization hosting her. The event began with an opening statement from Jasmynn Jordan, the chairwoman of the Young Americans for Freedom. She stated that “Iowa YAF is the premier conservative organization on campus, promoting individual liberty, free enterprises, strong national defense, and traditional values.” However, when it came to individual liberty and specifically “traditional values”, Cole seemed to differ both during her public speech and during our one-on-one interview. 

This isn’t to say Cole didn’t make statements or make clear the overlap between her and the party and institutions she represents. She went on to state the usual criticisms and clichés of similar speakers by commenting on subjects like the DSM 5’s updated definitions of gender dysphoria, equating trans care to abuse, and claiming that being transgender is caused by conditions like autism and ADHD or sexual assault trauma. On multiple occasions she made it very clear to quote “childhood transition should never be allowed,” and even proposed a limit on access to gender affirming care until the age of 25. 

Image via The Daily Iowan

Despite these claims, it’s relevant to establish the ways in which Cole distinguished herself from the YAF and similar commentators. For starts, Cole went into detail describing the role toxic masculinity played in coping with her sexual assault and intimate relationships, stating “I felt it would be a sign of weakness to tell anyone about this. I felt like the only choice I had was to man up. I started to develop a more masculine dynamic in my friendships, but I realized the social responsibility of being perceived as male was incredibly hard to deal with. It was a very lonely experience. I didn’t have as much room to talk about emotional struggles. My relationships were becoming more shallow, less intimate, and less satisfactory. I was putting on a mask and I started to developed depression.”  

In a private interview she expanded on this explaining her thoughts on male victims of sexual assault, harmfully enforced gender roles, and expanding the definitions of manhood. She also commented on the negative experience female gender socialization played prior to her transition, “It felt like a lot of the messaging that I was receiving not just around woman’s bodies but also around femininity and womanhood in general, was very destructive to my view of womanhood. I felt my value as a woman was sourced in frivolous things like the way I presented myself or the way I looked, or my sexuality rather than the content of my character.” Cole’s claims that gender should be measured by one’s internal sense of self and character rather than outward sexuality and adherence to stereotypically assigned roles is a critic more common to progressives than conservative commentators. 

This is on top of her disappointment in conservatives’ unwillingness to embrace the arts and modern media, and her appraisal of the LGBT community’s ideology of “self-acceptance, discovery, and acceptance of those who are different.” She even called for youth to “build their own identity,” highlighting the contrast between the speaker and those who were hosting her.  

Image via The Iowa Standard

Chloe Cole’s public relations team and YAF representatives presented themselves as very involved and controlling. Their staff tightly regulated what press was present, turning some people away, and what questions were asked. They blocked my questions during the Q&A, because it likely was pertinent in highlighting the differences between Cole’s opinions, and mainstream conservatism, which would’ve also put her at odds with the crowd present.

This, along with her age, gave the impression many of her choices and positions were made or influenced by the organization, and she was being used as a tool and martyr to advance anti-trans rhetoric. They removed me and our KRUI photographer when we attempted to interview legislators present at the event. 

On the YAF merch stand outside the Black Box Theater in which Cole was speaking, were stickers and flyers that directly contradicted many of the statements she had made both publicly and privately. With merchandise like stickers displaying “Woman, definition: adult human female.” and similarly crass phrases. All this put together creates an interesting dichotomy, not just between Chloe and protesters, but between her, the YAF and conservatives as a whole. 

As it neared 8:00 PM, and Cole’s event was coming to a close, protesters then moved to block the intersection at Madison and Jefferson Streets. During the protest of Matt Walsh’s presence last April, many protesters were charged with impeding traffic while doing the same. Learning from this, they circumvented the law by walking in circles around the intersection in order to not remain stationary and avoid charges.  

A line of cars trailed past the IMU towards Catlett Residence Hall. Despite their frustrations, protesters made the point that the frustrations from the people in their cars was insurmountable to the frustrations of the transgender community who over the years have faced countless attacks. This was a way for those people who were inconvenienced to be aware of the greater issues, and should take action so protests like these do not need to continue to happen. 

Image via Casper Bakker

In grabbing interviews while walking around the crosswalk circle, one of the protesters said that while Cole’s personal views are valid, they said that the event was “a misrepresentation of the whole trans community. Taking only their word for everything is senseless. The people who are lifting her up are using her to support their anti-trans views.” They continued saying that there was no true discussion in the event, and how the university putting these transphobic voices on a pedestal was inconsiderate of the community that it fosters.  

Eventually, the police deployed again to separate the ever-moving blockade across the intersection. They freed up one corner of the intersection so cars could slip by. Police had done so by positioning their cars in the way of the blockade, and physically pushed protesters aside, which led to vast anger among the protesters.

Once the flow of cars began leaving, protesters couldn’t reform the barrier. One protester when told how the police were involved from the beginning, said “the YAF wanted a sensationalist response, and to some extent they got one, but this is people standing together.” They also said although it’s their job, they wish the police had the ability to be conscientious objectors. 

After the blockade was broken up, the protest then organized to march to University President Barbara Wilson’s mansion to continue the demonstration there. In an interview during the march, one protester said that as a trans student, it has been scary to see all the advertising and support for Cole’s lecture, as they said it’s being held to incite hate towards the transgender community. They talked about how limiting gender affirming care is an attack on trans people, and went into their own experiences of how gender affirming care helped their mental health, which has also helped their physical health, and overall quality of life.  

Image via Casper Bakker

At Wilson’s mansion, protesters took turns giving speeches through a megaphone about their frustrations around anti-trans sentiments, as police stood outside on the lawn. Surrounding the significance of moving the protest to the mansion of the head of the university, one protester said, “it has to do with the president and the board of regents allowing transphobic speech by disguising it as a debate questioning the existence of trans people in society. Going to the president’s house shows that we want actual change to be done.” Others had stated that these events have happened before, and protests will continue until events like these are no longer held. They will not stop until there is a safe community for trans and queer people in Iowa City. 

Going forward, it’s unclear how the university will address the concerns it has received over the rise of “hate speech” being tolerated on campus as they juggle their role as protectors of students against violence and hate, and as a public institution beholden to legal limitations on what kinds of speech they can restrict.  

This article was written with aid from John Glab, and Casper Bakker.

The post Frustrations of the Student Body, and Chloe Cole’s Awkward Position Among Conservatives appeared first on KRUI Radio.

Walsh’s presence at the University of Iowa comes at a time when the transgender community in Iowa City has seen repeated attacks on their own existence. Most notable concerns come from Iowa Senate Files 482 and 538. File 482 bans transgender students from entering bathrooms that correspond to their gender identities, while File 538 bans transgender youth from receiving gender affirming care. Along with this, anti-transgender sentiment in the nation has been brought to the forefront. Examples include outrage over transgender social media personalities and blaming the transgender community for a Tennessee school shooting.  

YAF vice chairman John Piaszynski in an interview stated the YAF wanted to create a discussion on the transgender community, stating they wanted to provide an alternate viewpoint on campus, marking it as an opportunity for debate. Some of the issues they wanted to discuss were related to athletics and allowing gender affirming care to children under eighteen. He also mentioned how the organization has been attacked with things like their posters being ripped down, and chalk writings being ruined. In a leaked YAF group chat discussing the chalk writings, a group member used a slur to refer to transgender people.  

A protest formed at Hubbard Park just outside the Iowa Memorial Union, where protesters voiced their anger and distress over a figure like Matt Walsh coming to the University of Iowa. Expressing their frustration, they yelled out chants to those waiting in line to see Walsh speak. Upon speaking with some of the protesters, many expressed how the hniversity holding this event felt like an attack on them or their friend’s existence.  

Image via Wilhelmina Pudol

A transgender protester I interviewed said they were “Disappointed to see so many Iowans come out to see a figure who preaches the destruction of our people.” They went on to say this event bolsters a lot of misinformation around transgender people and inspires hate, which makes many people feel unsafe. They also debunked Walsh’s claim of “child mutilation” in the transgender community, making the point that no doctor would give gender reassigning surgery to someone under eighteen. They said that denying transgender children of hormonal and other treatments to better identify with their body is itself a form of mutilation.  

Many of the people waiting in line denied an opportunity to speak. Dalton, one of those who did speak, said that he was fully in support of the event. He stated while he didn’t hate transgender people, he did oppose what he called the ideology of “transgenderism,” a derogatory term, stating that he thought it was dangerous, and hoped that they could be helped to live more normal lives. 

Another person waiting in line had said that while they do like to watch Matt Walsh’s content, they came hoping for some level of debate. They had wanted to hear the thoughts of both sides, and hoped to have their feelings defined more so they could empathize better.  

Walsh’s speech began shortly after 7:00 pm with a few opening remarks from YAF Chairwoman Jasmyn Jordan. She touted scary proclamations that the event was a “Stand against the dark reaches of the transgender movement,” and a call to “End child mutilation.” Soon after, Walsh took the stage behind a large, round red podium.  

Image via Yahoo News

Walsh spent the first half of his speech talking about how his Twitter account had recently been hacked. He also talked about YouTube demonetizing his channel after he covered the recent Nashville school shooting, and for what he claimed to be “accurately gendering” transgender social media personality and actress Dylan Mulvaney by using wrong pronouns when referring to her. He also said that going against “transgenderism” is the last stand for western civilization. 

From there he went through different, easily debunkable anti-transgender arguments. This included the claim that biological sex is only binary. With this he also said that transgender people’s gender is instead a personality. This is a very similar sentiment to that of Wyatt Phillips, a leading member among the Iowa YAF organization. In my interview with him, he said that his identity as a male is based in biological fact, while the identities of transgender people are based in their mind. He said that this also makes up the basis of their personalities.  

The claim that gender is binary has been proved to be incorrect. Research beginning in the 1950’s examined the incongruences with the binary gender notion. While much less common, people are born with chromosomal differences compared to the typical “XX” and “XY” pairs. On top of this, different people have different hormonal balances. This creates a much more fluid structure of gender in society compared to the binary system that has influenced it throughout history.  

For the belief that being transgender makes up an entire person’s personality that both Walsh and Phillips seem to have, they have no good basis to draw that conclusion on. Walsh has built a name for himself based on being anti-LGBTQ, which brings hostility from members in that community towards his way. Phillips stated the primary experience he has with transgender people are in debate style discussions. These are not good situations to form an impression about someone, and learn about them as a person. It only perpetuates the hostilities between them.  

Image via Wilhelmina Pudol

In his speech, Walsh had also made the claim that transgender people haven’t always existed and it’s a recent phenomenon. This is untrue as accounts of transgender people existing can be found all over the world from antiquity to present times. There has been more visibility of transgender people in the current day due to societal progress and a greater openness to it. Transgender people have always been here, it’s just now more comfortable for them to come out. 

Despite all of these incorrect talking points, Walsh always emphasized them as the truth. He stated that everything he said was based on facts and science, because they went along with the traditional notion of gender. A common rallying cry among the protesters was to drive fascism off campus. Other than Walsh’s own claim to be a fascist, these actions strengthens that position. 

In the 1995 essay “Ur-Fascism” by Italian novelist Umberto Eco, using his experience growing up in Italy under Mussolini’s rule, he listed several characteristics that define fascism. He described them as a common enemy for a populous to rally against, a devout worship of traditionalism, and the twisting of truth to fit ideological needs.  

Matt Walsh did all of these in his speech. He rallied a crowd in a constant beratement of transgender people, where in his rhetoric attacked their very existence and slandered them as people. One of his bases for these attacks is the protection of traditional gender ideals and values. To do this he defined facts and truth as what he wanted it to be in order to fit his agenda, giving no evidence other than calling it fact. This is fascism, and we should fear its onset in our society. We should pushback against it, and it should not allowed here on our campus.

 Image via John Glab

At 7:30 pm the Q&A portion of the lecture began. However, unlike what YAF claimed the event was for, and what many were hoping to see, there was no debate. Those who made points that were anti-transgender, were cheered and reaffirmed by Walsh. Those who presented arguments and questioned the rhetoric of the night were vehemently booed by the audience before they could finish speaking, where then Walsh would respond with hollow bloviated counterpoints.  

There was no discussion, or exchange of ideas. Anti-transgender attitudes were only strengthened and given a platform. This made it clear that the point of the event was to foster a cesspool to spew out vile transphobic hate speech. The YAF and University of Iowa emboldened this.  

At 8:00 pm we filed out of the ballroom of the IMU and onto the street. Protesters had amassed on the street, blocking traffic from leaving the event. Quips among those leaving included, “look at this trans shit,” and “run them over.” During and after the event, protesters had been making noise with the help of a pep band and had been chanting out their frustrations.  

While the situation was somber and scary, the atmosphere of the protest had a festive air to it. Paras, a protester, said, “I’m proud of the community for coming out and supporting trans people. I’m also disappointed the university couldn’t speak up for us, but we came out and did it ourselves.”  They also said the protest better resembled the feelings of the student body, referring to the large amount of middle aged people who attended Walsh’s lecture.

Image via Wilhelmina Pudol

Harry, a protester and transgender woman gave a statement saying “It is the importance of the Iowa City government and school district to reject the recent senate files that were passed through. Every single individual should use their power to protect transgender youth. Make the right decision.”  

Upon hearing some of the things said during the lecture, she had said that being transgender is not a mental illness and isn’t something to be persecuted over. You can’t deny a person their existence, and you can’t tell them how to feel. It’s a matter of protecting human rights. She said being transgender has always been a part of who she is, and was something that she has seen in herself, giving a vivid account from when she was four.  

Just after 9:00 pm, the protest had begun to disperse, where everyone was encouraged to get back home safely. In an interview, a protester gave a few final remarks saying “I am proud of the community for coming out and being willing to stand up for trans rights. I am worried for the future, but we are standing in opposition to them trying to deny our rights, our healthcare, and who we are. If you’re not out here, get out here.” 

The post Matt Walsh Perpetuates Hate at the University of Iowa appeared first on KRUI Radio.

Friday night 37 year-old actor, screenwriter, producer, and more importantly, stand-up comedian Nick Swardson came to Iowa City for his sold out show.

The CAB comedy show was originally scheduled to take place on Friday December 13th, 2013, but due to unspecified conflicts, the show took place Friday January 24th in the Iowa Memorial Union Main Lounge at 10 pm.

Swardson is best known for his writing and roles in films and TV shows like: Grandma’s Boy, Malibu’s Most Wanted, Benchwarmers, Reno 911!, Just Go With It, and I Now Pronounce You Chuck & Larry. Nick started out doing stand up comedy at the very early age of 18 and began making a name for himself in the Minnesota comedy scene.

But before Mr. Swardson graced the stage with his new material, comedian and opener Josh Mann took the stage. While Mann truly did make me laugh on multiple occasions, his material overall lacked originality. It seemed as though the less rehearsed the jokes were, the better the reaction from the audience, (Such as his jokes involving the Ped Mall). His stage presence was awkward at best, mainly due to his incessant sipping of an unidentified Starbucks beverage. His demeanor was somewhat off-putting and definitely did not help the delivery of his material at all. All in all I have to say I wasn’t impressed with Josh Mann.

As disappointed as many may have been with the opener, that quickly changed for the better when Minnesota native Nick Swardson took the stage. Greeted by a roar rather than applause, Swardson took the stage with his classic funny man swagger. Dressed in a Young & Reckless t-shirt and snap back, along with neon Nikes and blue jeans, he greeted the audience by shouting, “What the fuck is up Iowa City?!”.  If such language is bothersome to you, then Swardson’s act was definitely not for you. Like many stand up comedians, most of his jokes were somewhat vulgar and profanity saturated. I say that in the most complementary way possible, because literally he had me in tears. His material covered a wide range of topics. Anything from cats, to the first man to experience a brain freeze, to ice skaters with diarrhea, were all fair game. The material was relatable and original in every way possible, and the crowd loved it.

Check out a pic a UI student snapped at the show by clicking on the Tweet below. Nick then retweeted it to his 500,000+ followers:

“@nellym2011: First row in Iowa City! @nickswardson Throw me a retweet. #IOWA pic.twitter.com/O1axpZyGmd” am I albino? Wtf? Haha

— Nick Swardson (@NickSwardson) January 25, 2014

Like any comedy venue, the IMU Main Lounge had it’s share of hecklers, which Swardson handled like a real pro. One young woman, got irrationally upset when Swardson was a telling a joke involving a woman performing oral sex. She yelled from the back of the room in a moment of silence, “Women are not objects!”. To this Nick responded jokingly with “No, you’re just alcoholics.” and then proceeded to tell more jokes aimed at women to make a hilarious point. Again, those sensitive to such topics are advised to avoid Swardson’s shows, because he is crude and fully proud of it. I completely enjoyed his set, along with the hundreds of others in the IMU Main Lounge. He had the crowd in the palm of his hand, and delivered much more than our money’s worth.

Swardson seemed to return the pleasant sentiment with the Tweet following the show you can read below:

Iowa U was dope. Such a fun crowd w/ great energy and some hammered folks. Love ya! Driving out to Des Moines tonight. Rain check the party

— Nick Swardson (@NickSwardson) January 25, 2014

To keep tabs on Nick, like him on Facebook and follow him on Twitter.

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