A conservative activist group’s unannounced visit to Tennessee State University ignited a debate over free speech and safety on campus.
Members of Fearless Debates said they had come to TSU to “create conversation and discourse.” The NAACP Nashville chapter countered that the group’s goal was to provoke and demean students at the historically Black university.
Witnesses said the group arrived Tuesday wearing “Make America Great Again” hats and carried poster boards with messages that included “Deport All Illegals Now” and “DEI Should Be Illegal.” They brought a table, microphone, and signs without obtaining permission from the university, according to TSU officials.
Campus police and staff escorted the group from university grounds. TSU said its students acted “professionally and respectfully” during the encounter.
Social media videos showed TSU students shouting, filming, taking their signs, and following the group as they were led away.
Fearless Debates described itself as part of the “Fearless Tour,” a grassroots effort inspired by the late conservative commentator Charlie Kirk. On its website, the group said it was “bringing honest conversation and open debate back to America’s college campuses.”
In a statement to the TSU community, the university called the visit “an attempt to draw attention to their views by creating visibility at the expense of Tennessee State University students.” Officials stressed that TSU would not tolerate attempts to “undermine the safety or value of our community.”
The NAACP Nashville chapter called the incident “an intentional effort to antagonize, disrupt and instill fear in a space meant to be safe and supportive for Black students.” The group added, “We are both infuriated and alarmed that groups like Fearless Debates targeted HBCUs in 2025 with rhetoric that echoed a long history of exclusion, racism and systemic oppression.”
John Vile, contributor to Middle Tennessee State University’s First Amendment Encyclopedia, said TSU was within its rights to remove the group. “What TSU has done, as far as I can tell, is perfectly legitimate,” Vile said. “If someone comes on campus with a fairly provocative message, you would probably want to arrange some security, both for the protesters’ sake and for the sake of the students.”
TSU officials said they were reviewing video footage to determine how the group had gained access to campus.
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