Tell Emerson College Interim President William Gilligan Criticism of the CCP is NOT Racist
Update (March 17, 2022): Emerson College has derecognized the school’s Turning Point USA chapter — but all is not lost! Please continue to send messages to the university’s Interim President William Gilligan asking him to reverse the decision and provide Emerson’s TPUSA club with the charter it deserves.
News broke on October 5 that Emerson College took punitive action against the school’s Turning Point USA (TPUSA) chapter for distributing stickers critical of the Chinese Communist Party.
The stickers prominently featured a hammer and sickle and read, “China Kinda Sus” — a reference to the popular online game Among Us in which players seek to guess who the enemy is (in the game, “sus” is slang/shorthand for “suspect” or “suspicious”).
Nevertheless, Emerson’s Interim President William Gilligan came out swinging against the student group, writing in a letter that the stickers were “inconsistent with the College’s values and will not be tolerated on our campus.” He continued: “At this time in particular, when there has been a rise in anti-Asian sentiment, it is important to denounce all instances of anti-Asian bigotry and hate, and affirm our support and solidarity with the Asian and Asian-American community on campuses and around the world.”
Criticizing the oppressive government of China is not racist!
Gilligan went on to declare that reports of the on-campus activity had been “referred to the Office of Community Standards and Student Conduct and the College will initiate an investigation.”
“Our organization faces removal from campus and all our board members face potential disciplinary action by the school,” TPUSA-Emerson President Sam Neves told The College Fix. “As an international student, some of those disciplinary actions could get me deported out of the United States.”
In a video posted on Twitter, TPUSA-Emerson Vice President Kjersten Lynum stated, “The sticker intends to criticize the Chinese government, the regime responsible for the largest genocide in the world right now.” She went on to share that her relatives are from China and Singapore, and is “offended that people would suggest I have hatred towards my own race.”
Emerson College purports to hold freedom of speech in the highest regard. Its “Statement on Freedom of Expression” says that preservation of speech “is not only a right but a community responsibility.”
Emerson College needs to stand by its stated support for freedom of speech and stop its disciplinary actions against Turning Point USA for criticizing the oppressive government of China.
Tell Emerson College Interim President William Gilligan to stop his foolish attack on Turning Point USA!