Student group leader Peter Bernaiche launched the Turning Point USA chapter here on the SMCC campus at the beginning of this 2026 semester after fighting for months to get approved. Turning Point USA (TPU) is a right-wing think tank that looks to open dialogue to students in order to break them out of liberal or left-wing ideology that they feel is problematic towards our national identity. On campuses all over the US, TPU offers open-mic debates. Similar to open-mic nights in which one might perform music or comedy, one is given a short time to debate with a Turning Point representative—typically another student. The debates are often used for video clips, publicity and attempting to change student minds. These debates were first made popular by deceased face of the organization Charlie Kirk. Kirk was assassinated last September during one one such event after questioning a student about gun violence. He rose to prominence in the Trump voter base by questioning the roles and value of both women and people of color in American society by promoting religious ideologies at the expense of a truly scientific and academic education. He was also a father and husband.
After speaking with 5 SMCC students about this new club they shared fear of being ostracized and harassed. One student, Zeph, even expressing how his photo was allegedly used non-consensually to promote their next “campus clash” event saying, “They took a picture of me… from the back debating them and used them as their poster. I didn’t know until my friend pointed it out.” Campus Clash is the decidedly aggressive name chosen for these open-mic debates. When asked if these students felt safe here on campus, Lucy, another student interviewed, said, “It’s been, I’d say uncomfortable.” They remarked that the organization doesn’t seem to be strong enough to really shake up the peace and safety, saying, “I don’t think Turning Point will be around forever, we’re kind of in the middle of a big boom… I don’t think they specifically will be here for the long haul.” When asked how they feel like they could push back against TPUs message they said they think ignoring them and not paying them any mind is the move–that if we simply do not give them the attention they seek that they will disappear.
When asked what the primary goal of allowing TPU on the SMCC campus, faculty advisor for TPU Dan Ford said, “Young students are never exposed to other ideas because of their [online] echo chambers, so this gives them the chance to have polite dialogue about those things.” He told students they could rest assured that if Peter Bernaiche or anyone associated with TPU started promoting hate speech in any way that he would personally, “shut it down.” According to students on the SMCC social app, Peter allegedly gave his introduction to the community as being anti-trans by claiming trans people are “cheating” in sports when trans people make up around 0.002% of college athletes in the US.
This post was removed by Peter as he said he was confronted that the social app wasn’t the place for debate.
According to the SMCC social apps group page, the club already has over thirty members who comment on the app’s profile page regularly. The members are often met with criticisms and trolling from other students who don’t support TPUs messages.
Many supporters of TPU on campus are requesting speakers like Nick Fuentes and Jackson Hinkle. Fuentes has been quoted denying the holocaust and has attacked the Jewish faith by blaming both Judaism and the Jewish race for violence perpetuated across the world, particularly in the middle east and United States. He used a metaphor of baking cookies to suggest that there was no way the Nazis could have murdered that many people during the holocaust because they simply didn’t have the resources, making no claim that the murders were morally wrong. You can find this quote from his own live streamed internet show “America First.”
Whether or not you support TPUs agenda of free speech and open dialogue, it’s clear that TPU supporters on campus are advocating for more extreme views to be represented. As far as the opposition against TPU goes, and in spite of clear distaste for their presence on campus, many have resigned themselves to inaction, optimistic that the extreme right will not pose a prolonged threat to political discourse at SMCC. What do you think about TPUs presence on campus?
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The SMCC Beacon 