Candace Owens says transgender equity destroying 'family unit' at TPUSA event at Clemson

Conservative provocateur Candace Owens berated affirmative action policies and referred to the experiences of transgender residents as a "mental illness" at Clemson University Tuesday night, March 4.

She claimed transgender experiences and efforts to introduce equity were destroying the "family unit."

The "All Lives Matter" event was hosted by the university's chapter of Turning Point USA, which has in the past hosted Charlie Kirk, the founder of Turning Point, and Fox News commentator Tomi Lahren.

When Lahren appeared in 2021, a group of about 200 protestors - mostly Clemson students - gathered outside of the event. There were no protestors outside Tuesday night.

Compared to the pushback Lahren received in her appearance, Owens' event had 10 students in the audience who raised their hand to say that they disagreed with her views.

Clemson University is not a sponsor or official host of Turning Point USA events held on campus, but Clemson does provide members of its staff, including law enforcement, for TPUSA events.

At the beginning of the event, Owens said she met with Dr. L. Christopher Miller, the university's Dean of Students. Owens said Miller told her he was excited to have both conservatives and liberals on campus.

Taylor Rogers, Turning Point President at Clemson, said the country was racially divided to the extent that people assume a person's political affiliation based on their race.

"I think Candace provides an interesting outlook into − your race doesn't define your values and everyone can have their own political views," Rogers said.

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Owens focused on the American education system and said the current state of public school education was "leftist in nature." She alleged students were not being taught how to think, but what to think.

Owens argued a lopsided narrative in the education sphere was an intentional trick on the part of the federal government.

"They know exactly what they're doing," she said. "They want everybody to become welfare dependents."

Owens compared that type of dependence to modern day slavery.

Her comparison of the current government system to modern day slavery drew criticism from an Anderson University student, Jasmine Cuffy, who came with friends to listen to Owens.

"I'm more of an independent type of person and see both sides," Cuffy said. "So I would like clarification when you compare modern day government to slavery, because in my mind as an historian, that is very problematic to even compare."

Owen said the government has adopted cold, ruthless "Machiavellian" techniques to keep Black America poor. She also alleged Black conservatives were the most criticized and unpopular group.

"(Black conservatives) are suffering social lynchings for having the audacity to think for ourselves," Owens said.

Cuffy responded. "I don't understand how you can make the assumption that it's (education) controlled by the federal government when the education is like a state-by-state thing," she said. Cuffy added, that though the Department of Education gave funding to states, states were essentially responsible for curating curriculum for public schools.

Owens is a controversial figure due to her rise as a Pro-Trump commentator. Throughout 2017, Owens denigrated Black Lives Matter and the criticisms of white supremacy.

In late 2017, Owens started producing videos that pushed her into prominence and helped her become the communications director at Charlie Kirk's Turning Point.

She co-founded the BLEXIT Foundation, a Black conservative movement, which encourages Black Americans to rethink their political ideologies and shift their allegiance to the Republican party if they identify as a Democrat.

In step with other conservative figures, Owens has also indulged in a slew of anti-LGBTQ rhetoric, often referring to gender-affirming healthcare as "evil."

Medical associations such as the American Academy of Pediatrics say gender-affirming treatments, which include hormone therapy, puberty blockers, counselling and surgery after an individual is 18-years-old, are essential to a transgender person's survival.

But Owens has shifted away from medical opinion. After the mass shooting in Nashville last week, Owens ramped up her Twitter feed with several anti-transgender posts.

She lambasted the left for not coming to the middle for dialogue. When a student pointed out that the right has also not tried to compromise to reach an understanding, Owens said that it was a fair assessment, but continued:

"I do not want to be in the middle on transgenderism. I want to win."

Her statements were met with applause by the over 100 students in attendance.

Tobias Walker, 22, was disappointed to see the lack of protest against Owens' appearance at Clemson.

"She's transphobic," Walker said.

Devyani Chhetri covers the South Carolina State House and is a watchdog SC government reporter. You can reach her at dchhetri@gannett.com or @ChhetriDevyani.

This article originally appeared on Greenville News: Candace Owens berates affirmative action, trans rights at Clemson