An open mic discussion with American political activist Charlie Kirk created a stir on Illinois State University’s campus Tuesday afternoon. Kirk, founder of Turning Point USA, held an open discussion with students at Milner Plaza as part of his “American Comeback Tour.” The tour consists of Kirk visiting several college and university Turning Point USA chapters across the country. Kirk covered ground at other schools in Illinois as well, with a stop at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign scheduled after his ISU visit. Kirk fans and protesters attended the open discussion at ISU. Fans wore hats reading President Donald Trump’s campaign slogan, “Make America Great Again” (MAGA). Some also wore hats with the number 47 written on them, in reference to Trump being the 47th president. Various topics were discussed, such as government morals and artificial intelligence potentially overtaking future career opportunities Kirk began the open discussion expressing his Christian faith. “Jesus is the way, the truth and the life,” Kirk said when he first approached the microphone. Junior business management and entrepreneurship major Pat Shadid appreciated Kirk for sharing his faith. “Charlie Kirk brings up Christ, and that’s something that I really love,” Shadid said. “He tries to keep Christian values in the world, which is very crucial to have [in] any sort of society. Whether we disagree or agree on everything with each other, I love that Charlie Kirk can come out here and preach Christ.” Shadid is also a member of the Turning Point USA at ISU chapter. Shadid said the group had been setting things up for the event since 9 a.m. on Tuesday. Shadid said he joined the Turning Point USA at ISU chapter after a friend of his, Matt Saner, became the organization’s vice president. “Our biggest mission is to open up conversations between different political parties or people who believe something different than us with this event,” Saner said, sharing his organization’s objectives. The event had a large number of attendees. Haters and lovers of Kirk crowded together within the barricades surrounding Milner Plaza, with some protesters remaining in a group of their own behind the crowd. The increasing volume of the crowd often overshadowed discussions between students and Kirk. Many attendees cheered or said vulgar phrases in response to Kirk’s comments and people’s questions directed to Kirk. An event titled “Free John Pork Rally,” inspired by a popular internet meme that emerged in 2018, was organized by protesters in the same location as Kirk’s discussion. Protesters held signs with anti-Kirk messaging while chanting, “Free John Pork.” Senior English major Emmanuel Reed was among the protesters at the “Free John Pork Rally.” Reed expressed a dislike for Kirk’s past comments. “Charlie Kirk is a racist,” Reed said. “He has a direct quote saying that if he sees a Black man flying a plane, then he’s going to pray to the Lord because he feels that Black people [are not] competent. There’s no evidence saying that a Black man has less qualifications than a white man to fly a plane–he just made that up.” On the topic of AI, Kirk said AI will soon replace many jobs due to its superior speed and accuracy compared to humans. “Artificial intelligence will replace 99% of all the jobs you’re getting degrees for. We’re going to have to re-train the entire country to use AI and to find other jobs,” Kirk said. “For example, in healthcare, there’s an entire profession where cardiologists read heart scans. But now AI does it quicker and more accurately,” Kirk continued. An anonymous attendee challenged Kirk on AI. He explained why he chose to enter the discussion. “Me being an industry professional, I didn’t feel comfortable letting him give that insight to the youth; it’s not something to worry about,” the attendee said. “AI is certainly not going to take jobs. I don’t think it will replace millions of jobs and certainly not [entire] workforces.” Regarding higher education, Kirk stated that it is useless for obtaining future career opportunities. Senior special education major Amanda Stringer said she was confused by Kirk’s statement. “I don’t understand why a man who hates higher education takes a [stance] against it, saying it's not useful for getting jobs, [and comes] to a college campus,” Stringer said. Senior history education major Matthew Ganson asked Kirk about his stance on college being unnecessary. “I ended up asking about the role of secondary educators,” Ganson said. “I ended up agreeing with a lot of what he said. I tend to be more left-leaning–I like to call myself an old-school liberal.” Ganson agreed with Kirk on other topics such as his views on antisemitism. “The most interesting thing is [that] Charlie Kirk [is] really into outing antisemitism. I think he does a good job finding the nuances,” Ganson said. An attendee named Jeffrey asked Kirk about his opinions on the legalization of recreational marijuana. “Legalization has made it more proliferated,” Kirk said. “Can you also acknowledge that some people who use marijuana also have increased depression and anxiety? Should the government make something that is terrible for your mind and brain legal?” Jeffrey explained why he believes marijuana should be legalized in all 50 states. “It may be the gateway drug to all other drugs, but if you can stick to weed–Snoop Dogg is someone who can advocate for that–if Snoop Dogg can advocate for just sticking to weed, it’s fine,” Jeffrey said. During his discussion with Kirk, Jeffrey said he turned to weed as a distraction after he lost his mother. He later said that God was who brought him through it. Attendees dressed in different costumes, including someone dressed as the devil. Jeffrey expressed disapproval of this costume choice. “That is terrible for the young minds to see. I believe everyone should follow God,” Jeffrey said. When the event ended, junior legal studies and criminal justice studies double major Abby Ortiz shared her takeaway from the discussions and thoughts about the behavior of other attendees. “My takeaway was that America has a serious problem right now,” Ortiz said. “We’ve become too comfortable in being stagnant in a set identity and its expected beliefs. So when someone challenges our personal ideologies, we can no longer have adult conversations and instead shut down and berate those who disagree with us, or even cancel them.” Ortiz added that it is important to hear other opinions even if one may disagree with them. “Most people at that event that screamed hateful things, or were rude to others or said things about Charlie Kirk did so just because everyone else on their side of the fence was doing it,” Ortiz said. “The amount of students who were booing and cheering, not even knowing what was being said just because the crowd was doing it, provided an ample demonstration of the lack of independence not only college students but American citizens everywhere have.” Ganson expressed satisfaction with the discussion. “There’s no better place to have this debate than outside of Illinois State. I’m happy with how the Illinois State student body handled it,” Ganson said. Kirk’s next on-campus visits include Purdue University, Michigan State University and Boise State University.