Student Turning Point Protest Turns Violent
A protest allegedly erupted into violence at a school, after protestors gathered in opposition of the conservative group, Turning Point.
Today’s America is fueled by polarized protests on both sides of politics. From Black Lives Matter to COVID mandates, all the way to the recent stint of both pro-abortion and pro-life protests, it’s becoming a common part of everyday life. Colleges and even public schools are no longer safe from these types of demonstrations. Recently, one of those protests was reported to have turned violent at a high school in Missouri, with Turning Point being at the center of the protest.
The Post Millenial, a conservative news site, shared a report that violence erupted at Lee’s Summit West High school in Missouri as liberal students violently disrupted an after-school Turning Point group’s meeting. The allegations say that student activists vandalized school property, saying that they flipped a table over, shattering glass across the classroom. The reports claim that the violence caused the school administration to be forced to shut down the group’s meeting.
Turning Point USA (TPUSA) is an American nonprofit organization advocating for conservative values within high schools, colleges, and universities. According to the group’s mission statement, its goal is to educate students on the values of freedom, free markets, and limited government. Furthermore, they seek to empower young activists with strategies to combat the left. Because of their controversial mottos, many opposers see the group as a backward mission seeking to indoctrinate students, something the group says it is against.
For context on where The Post Millenial received its information on these allegations, the site shared a photograph making its rounds on Twitter. The Tweet comes from Pete Mundo, a conservative radio talk show host from Missouri. Mundo shared a photo of a student with a face covering standing in front of the broken glass that Mundo claims the student protestors destroyed during the Turning Point meeting.
Furthermore, Post Millenial claims that the protesters used violence and intimidation on the Turning Point group of students. The site shared a link to allegations and testimonies made by the Turning Point students, also claiming to show video footage of the events. However, the link to the source leads to a Turning Point site that no longer exists.
The Post Millenial also shared a screenshot of a schoolwide email that was sent out by Lee’s Summit West High School principal, Dr. Chad Hertzog. The administrator acknowledged that students were gathering to protest the activities of the Turning Point group, but made no note of violence. Hertzog stated that student protestors gathered around the courtyard to protest before returning to classes. The principal also started his statement by saying he wanted to clear up the accusations that were being discussed on the matter.
Did the liberal students really enact violence and destruction within the Turning Points group meeting? Or was it just the result of one bad apple? While The Post claims it was the act of a group of protestors, there is no clear evidence justifying these claims. Likewise, other social media users have responded to Mundo’s Tweet with an additional picture from the school protest, showing a large number of students peacefully standing inside the school’s court, backing up the principal’s claims in the email.
Without further proof of the events that went down during the Turning Point meeting at school, it is impossible to tell if this was the acts of an entire group of left-wing students, like The Post claims, or simply the aftermath of one unruly student. Unfortunately, both sides of politics are guilty of deceiving claims and reports against each other. And despite which side of the debate students fall under, it mirrors a perpetual trend pitting young children against one another.
