FIRE ‘deeply concerned’ after OK State student reprimanded by faculty for wearing ‘triggering’ Trump hat

Josh Wilson, a junior at Oklahoma State University (OSU), was wearing a hat with "47" on it in September when he was giving remarks at the Student Government Association (SGA) meeting on Charlie Kirk’s life. However, afterwards, he was reprimanded by Melisa Echols, a coordinator of SGA programs at the university, according to Campus Reform.

Echols reportedly said in the meeting with Wilson, “As a person who doesn’t look like you and has not had the same lived experience as you, I have family who don’t look like you who are triggered - and I will be very candid with you - who are triggered by those hats and by that side.”

Wilson also claimed Echols made an implicit threat, stating: “It cannot just be, ‘yes, but’ - cannot be every response that you give me. Otherwise, this year is going to be difficult for you.”

After news of the scandal broke, FIRE sent a letter to OSU, stating, "FIRE, a nonpartisan nonprofit dedicated to defending freedom of speech,1 is deeply concerned by the warning OSU’s coordinator of the Student Government Association issued to student senator Joshua Wilson regarding a hat Wilson wore during an SGA session. We write to urge OSU to uphold its students’ First Amendment rights, and refrain from making implicit threats to students based their protected expression."

"FIRE is concerned about the chilling effect created by Echols summoning Wilson to an urgent meeting to warn him of unspecified difficulties in response to his political speech. As a public institution bound by the First Amendment, OSU must refrain from even appearing to punish or reprimand students for clearly protected expression," the letter from FIRE added.

In his remarks, Wilson, calling Kirk a "shining light for so many,” called for peaceful discourse to continue, and added, “May we carry forward his legacy by refusing to shy away from difficult conversations, by standing firm in our convictions, and by remembering that true progress begins with dialogue.”

A university statement read, “The university is committed to protecting, promoting and facilitating free expression for all students, regardless of their views, and clarification regarding SGA policies has been provided to appropriate university staff. OSU embraces its role as a marketplace of ideas, and we believe a robust public discourse is essential to the process of addressing society’s most pressing challenges, which is our charge as a land-grant institution.”

A recent Turning Point event at UC Berkeley was disrupted in part by the far-left militant group “Students Organizing for Liberation” last week. The event, part of the “This is the Turning Point” tour with guests Frank Turek and Rob Schneider, hosted over 300 attendees. Demonstrators used tear gas bombs, fireworks and tried to break through barriers in an effort to intimidate attendees. They also mocked Charlie Kirk’s death, chanting “F*ck your dead homie.”

In contrast, Jack Posobiec and Benny Johnson, TPUSA contributors, along with other members of Turning Point USA and Jack’s wife Tanya, handed out 3,000 Freedom Charlie Kirk shirts in an hour in front of Madison Square Garden in New York City before a UFC event this past Saturday.

On Fox and Friends the next morning, Posobiec said that “we tried to come out there last night to do something that would highlight something positive, something good to show that there’s still goodness in the world, to show that there’s still a chance for redemption, even in many cases,” adding, “We’re either going to [get freedom] or we’re going to get Marxism.”