In 2019, at Mississippi State University’s Colvard Student Union, DailyWire’s Andrew Klavan gave a speech entitled “How to Live a Crap Life: The Deadly Sins of Leftism.” While I do not share all of his ideas, following his speech a student asked him a question.
“Where did we take a wrong step in creating this environment where people with such conflicting points of view couldn’t be friends?” the student asked.
Klavan responded with what he believes is the cause of today’s political discourse.
“Two people of goodwill can debate anything and find some common ground or just agree to disagree if both of them are honest and looking for answers,” Klavan said. “But once you are just looking to impose your will on somebody, you can’t do that anymore. So, you can’t be friends with people.”
A speech with a title of such magnitude would be protested at many universities, after all, Klavan was claiming that one side of the aisle had been consumed by the “seven deadly sins.” Protests, however, did not take place.
Klavan makes a valid point: today’s political discourse often seeks to impose one side’s will rather than fostering ideas that improve society.
MSU was named a 2025 top 10 university for free speech by FIRE, The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression. With news every year of my college career pointing out on-campus protests that push national debates, MSU has always been unique in staying out of the conversation.
Klavan gave his speech through the MSU chapter of YAF, Young America’s Foundation, which has since become a non-entity here. Organized political activity as a general rule simply seems to be ineffective at MSU.
Speakers come to cover political and controversial issues all the time and rarely are protested. When Cliffe and Stuart Knechtle came to campus last year to talk about Christianity, rather than protest, students pushed the limits of the fire code, crowding every event they held indoors.
This contrasts the experience when the infamous self-proclaimed Christians come to campus and shout about how all students are due for eternal damnation, which students generally ignore.
Dean of Students and Associate Vice Provost for Student Success Thomas Bourgeois spoke on the placement of MSU in FIRE’s top 10 ranking.
“As I have said in the past, I am proud that MSU continues to have a strong commitment to protecting speech on campus, and although we don’t always agree on the topics of discussion, we recognize the importance of maintaining an environment that allows us to continue to have difficult discussions surrounding the complicated issues our world faces,” Bourgeois said.
Political activism among Gen Z has been on the rise for years. In an editorial for the New York Times on New Year’s Eve in 2023, Michelle Cottle noted the ways in which Gen Z reacts differently to political messaging.
“Younger voters also are less inclined to turn out simply because they like a candidate’s personality. Now and then, one comes along who inspires them (think Barack Obama) or, alternatively, outrages them enough to make them turn out in protest (think Donald Trump). But more often they are driven by issues that speak to their lives, their core values or, ideally, both,” Cottle wrote.
Some would argue that there is an overabundance of issues that speak to the lives of students in the world today, yet there remains to be any form of major political spectacles on campus. Major political activist speakers have rarely been present at MSU since Klavan’s speech in 2019, protests among students are few and far between, with climate protests being the most popular and students generally show a lack of interest in politics.
This may be due to the state of play in politics today. One side receiving everything they wanted in the prior election leaves no reason for activism, and the other in defeat may feel as though their actions would lead to nowhere.
This may also be through the free speech culture that the MSU administration has fostered.
Never are there major political disputes on campus, and when outspoken speakers come, students are quicker to listen than to attack, as shown when the Knechtles came to campus.
Furthermore, MSU’s Big Dawg organization includes representatives from student organizations like College Republicans, College Democrats and FLARE. These organizations sit among some of the most powerful on campus due to MSU’s commitment to free speech. Through this, MSU pushes students to be tolerant of views from every aisle and realm of thought and that is felt on campus.
While students watch as chaos reigns on other campuses across the United States due to political activity, MSU has successfully cultivated a culture that avidly avoids political conflict.
