March 28, 2024 2:48 PM
Search

College Republicans United Prescott Convention – Nick Fuentes to Speak

Photo: Nick Fuentes

The Arizona-based College Republicans United has announced that their second National Convention will be held in Prescott, Arizona, on the afternoon of Sunday, July 30, 2023.  Nick Fuentes, an America First advocate and bete noire of the left has confirmed as the keynote speaker. His edgy, unconventional podcasts have won a huge following among the young.

College Republicans United was founded in 2018  by students at Arizona State University (ASU) as a more conservative alternative to the moderate and establishment oriented College Republicans. The political philosophy of the newer group echoes Trumpian themes of  populism and America First nationalism. They offer an unapologetic defense of America’s founding culture and European heritage.

They broke with the older College Republicans over issues such as the  acceptance of high levels of immigration and sanctuary policies,  denunciation of conservative critics, and curtailing free speech or what some refer to  as “hate speech” on campus. Many young conservatives view the older  College Republicans as “toadies”  or  “sell outs” and have gravitated to the America First positions represented by College Republicans United.

The more conservative group has established chapters on several of Arizona’s college campuses. They are now expanding nationally and founding chapters at America’s leading colleges and universities. Locally, Embry Riddle Aeronautical University and Yavapai Community College have been identified as fertile ground for expansion.

According to Richard Thomas, one of the founders and current President of College Republicans United, the  decision to hold the National Convention in Prescott was heavily influenced by the area’s demographics and reputation as a conservative stronghold. Citing such factors as broad support for President Trump, the area’s many political clubs and activists,  and the rise of conservative media such as Prescott eNews, “the infrastructure for an America First movement is already in place.” Thomas states “the stars are aligned. We believe now is the time to bring our populist, nationalist, America First message to the student population of Yavapai County.”  (Editor’s Note:  In the interest of free speech, Prescott eNews is providing video services to the event.)

The keynote speaker, Nick Fuentes, has a well earned reputation for controversy. Fuentes has been accused of being a “racist” and “white nationalist” and has been denounced by Jewish groups for what they regard as “antisemitism”.   Thomas concedes that there has been considerable pushback from establishment quarters. According to Mr. Thomas, the most intense opposition has come from the Republican establishment who he says “are in dread of their own young.”

Also opposing the event, or at least Nick Fuente’s appearance as a keynote speaker, are a number of Jewish groups.  Thomas believes this is fed by leftist propaganda and a misunderstanding about Fuente’s role as a provocateur and satirist. He says outrageous things for shock value. His website refers to his podcasts as “comedy” and “satire.”  He claims Jewish and black followers. He recently had dinner with Donald Trump at Mar-A-Lago in the company of  Kanye West, the black rapper and entrepreneur. Some of his podcasts have featured blacks and  other minorities.

The late comedian Lenny Bruce was famous for using the ‘N’ word in his comedy act. But he did it to mock and discredit racism, not to promote it. Fuentes has shocked the public by claiming admiration for Adolf Hitler and the Nazis,  “every kid knows they’re cool”.  But the context was the pageantry and spectacle of Nazi propaganda,  the  motorcades, the cheering crowds and torchlight parades. Fuentes hasn’t endorsed Nazi ideology or denied Hitler’s  responsibility for starting a cruel war that killed millions of innocent people.

In a recent podcast, Fuentes, who humorously claims to be an “incel” (involuntarily celibate)—a claim that seems  improbable given his youth and celebrity— said that when  he reaches 30, he’d like to marry a 16 year old. The response was probably what he hoped for—universal shock.  Jake Angeli, the QAnon Shaman and Jan 6  defendant who is  scheduled to speak at the Convention said he was coming to “expose a false prophet”.

But Fuente’s facetious riff on his marriage plans is less shocking when you consider that the age of consent in most countries is 16 and even younger in some places.  In the United States, day care centers are commonplace in urban high schools to encourage pregnant teenagers,  some as young as 14 and 15,  to stay in school. In Arizona it’s  perfectly legal to marry at 16 with parental  consent– as it is in most states.  Is it possible Fuentes was being satirical?

It’s no secret that most American college campuses are “woke”.  As a group, college students and faculty are a reliably progressive, Democratic vote. Just this week the Arizona legislature opened an investigation into the firing of an executive director at ASU who sponsored conservative speakers Dennis Prager and Charlie Kirk at the Barrett Honors College. According to news reports, a major donor of the college has pulled his funding, citing liberal bias and intolerance for free speech.

The 2020 US Census revealed that for the first time in American history, white kids under the age of 18 are a racial minority group. But Republican leaders avoid any discussion of what this means for the future of American culture and social institutions, not to mention the prospects for the Republican Party.

Nick Fuentes gained notoriety at the age of 18 with what many consider to be provocative and incendiary remarks about race and immigration. While still in his teens, he was denounced for “Hate Speech”  by groups like the Southern Poverty Law Center. Fuentes is unapologetically Christian and believes that secular culture has had a corrosive effect on American society. This  has earned him vilification from secular humanists and non-Christians.  He also has questioned aspects of the Holocaust narrative. This has earned him smears from Jewish organizations like the Anti-Defamation  League (ADL).

But enemies on the left have made Nick Fuentes a hero on the right, especially among the young. They relate to his mocking and defiant rhetoric. They admire his courage in standing up to the Establishment. His popularity among young conservatives marks the end of complacency and denial about the future. For the disaffected young who will inherit the future, the rebellious and insouciant Nick  Fuentes has become the Happy Warrior of the Right.

Local residents will have a chance to hear Nick Fuentes in person on the afternoon of July 30, 2023.  The event is free and open to the public. College Republicans United cordially invites all members of the community who support free speech to join them Sunday afternoon,  July 30th.  For security reasons, the full list of speakers and the exact time and location will be announced a few days before the event.

Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
Pinterest

One Response

  1. Difficult to follow but it appears to me the attacks come from the radical left and their friends. While confusing, “I” bet CRU are pretty much united in support of another ravaged group; Trump supporters.
    The divisions within the Republican party will mainly go away as the primary season will be revealing to all except the Trump haters.
    Hopefully the College Republicans United will finds the support of Trump and those of us who remember the basically four years of prosperity and no wars. Little effort is required to remind all of the costly inflation brought on by Biden and his handlers.

Related Articles