Former U.S. vice president Mike Pence spoke on UNC campus Wednesday evening, drawing a protest outdoors as he promoted conservative policies while attacking “woke” topics inside Carolina’s Student Union.
UNC was the latest stop for the Republican and former Indiana governor, who is traveling to universities across the country with the support of the conservative nonprofit Young America’s Foundation. His appearance provided the latest example to ongoing conversations on the Chapel Hill campus of providing space for free speech and weighing political ideology vs. extremism.
Ahead of the event, as a crowd for a rally hosted by the UNC Young Democrats gathered in the Pit, a line of UNC students and community members snaked along South Road to enter for Pence’s keynote speech. Around 500 people would eventually walk into the Great Hall of the Student Union to sit in rows of chairs and see Pence speak from an on-stage dais.
Former VP Mike Pence is speaking at #UNC tonight, hosted by the Young Republicans club & sponsored by the Young America's Foundation. There's a big crowd inside, which had a line down in front of South Road. There's a crowd in the Pit for a protest hosted by the Young Democrats. pic.twitter.com/hFWLARKmY1
— Brighton McConnell (@BrightonMcC1) April 26, 2023
Aaron Neighbors, who is in Carolina’s Class of 2026, stood toward the middle of the line waiting to enter. He was one of several students in attendance dressed in a suit, describing the wardrobe choice as preparation in case he got a photo with the former vice president.
“I have been waiting since 5:30 p.m.,” he said, “and as you can see [from the line behind me], I was definitely one of the early ones. I think we underestimated how much [interest] Pence can draw.
“I’m interested in the title: ‘Saving America From the Woke Left,'” Neighbors added, saying his political leanings are more to the right. “I’m interested to see how he defines that and what exactly he thinks he can do to make that difference.”
Charlie Armstrong, a second-year student at UNC, said he does not agree with Pence’s political views and did not expect for that to change based on the speech. But he said he made a point to come because he believed it would be “entertaining” and a potentially informative experience.
“Personally, I’m a political science student,” said Armstrong. “I really like learning about political institutions. And my politics don’t align with his, but I really think it’s a rare opportunity to hear a politician — someone who’s reached that high of a level in the political ladder — speak. Even if I don’t agree with what he has to say, I’d like the chance to see him.”
Benjamin Hadad, a sophomore, said he was excited to hear Pence had agreed to come to UNC and that the choice to speak didn’t surprise him like it did some other students.
“UNC is a public university, so it’s bound by the First Amendment,” Hadad said. “They have an obligation to do this kind of thing.
“This is my first time attending one of these events, so I’m not really sure what to expect,” he continued as the line moved forward. “One thing I hope is there’s not too much disruption or anything.”
There was ultimately little interruption to Pence’s time in the Student Union, save for one person removed for yelling to Pence that former President Donald Trump “trusted you” and Pence “betrayed” his running mate. The former VP did, however, tote the policies put in place during Trump’s administration and establishment of conservative judges in “every level of the court system,” while railing against President Joe Biden’s policies since being elected in 2020. Earlier in the evening to press members, Pence said he believes America “is in trouble” and is keeping a personal run for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination in “prayerful consideration.”
Former Vice President Mike Pence speaks to gathered press members ahead of his keynote speech at UNC, sponsored by the Young America’s Foundation.
During his speech, Pence also brought up several popular talking points among conservative lawmakers. He said he believes curriculum or history classes that include Critical Race Theory should be “banned from every classroom” and are “state-sanctioned racism.” Pence criticized participation of transgender athletes in women’s athletics, saying he believes “participation in sports should be determined by one’s gender at birth.” He also took time to say that his perception of universities in the U.S. are becoming more “intolerant to conservative or traditional views,” equating it to an attack on the freedom of speech that the “woke Left” aims to take away.
The former vice president said earlier, however, that he believes his hosts in Chapel Hill are an example of how to provide space for such ideologies.
“I do want to commend [UNC],” Pence said to reporters, “I think the University of North Carolina has been a great exception to that [trend]. I think it’s been a great institution that has respected academic freedom. My presence here today, and the warm welcome we’ve gotten from the Board of Trustees, has been very meaningful.”
Organizers for the UNC Young Democrats speak to a crowd in The Pit ahead of Mike Pence’s speech called “Saving America From the Woke Left.” The group titled its protest as a response.
Outside of the Student Union, other students gathered with the goal of showing solidarity against Pence’s presence and political values.
After learning of the UNC College Republicans’ plans to host Pence, the UNC Young Democrats club put together their own event: a protest with more than a dozen other student and campus groups against the Republican Party’s priorities. Representatives from the university’s worker’s union, drag club, and gun reform groups all took turns sharing their concerns about Pence’s and Republican leadership’s messages on Wednesday night — and their goals for the country.
President of the UNC Young Democrats TJ White helped start the protest, telling the dozens of people gathered that Pence represents an agenda by the Republican Party that is exclusionary and threatens many of those on the Chapel Hill campus. Ahead of the protest, White told Chapelboro he believes in the College Republicans’ right to have Pence on campus, but that he believes extreme and discriminatory policies cannot be categorized as “free speech.”
“You start with a matter of speech promoting beliefs and ideas,” he said, “and [there is also] speech that is a direct threat to someone’s existence and identity. So, if it’s speech that attacks someone because they’re Black, brown, or because they’re trans or gay, or because they’re a worker trying to form a union on campus — I think that should be restricted and I think the university should have a role in subverting, changing, or stopping that message.”
Chair of the North Carolina Democratic Party Anderson Clayton spoke at the rally and offered a similar perspective, saying Pence’s policies do not represent the future she believes North Carolina deserves and the future cultivated by the students at Carolina.
“When we think of UNC, we think of progress and opportunity — we don’t think of Mike Pence,” Clayton said. “[He] is here tonight in hopes of running for president, and we’re here because his vision leaves out too many people. When it comes to women’s rights and reproductive health care, rights for the LGBTQ community and gun violence prevention, Mike Pence is on the wrong side of history.”
Elsa Landeros, an upcoming co-president of the Latinx cultural group Mi Pueblo, said she and her peers feel especially threatened by Pence and his supporters, pointing to his immigration policy and comments denigrating all those with Latinx roots.
“Being minorities at a [predominantly white institution] is hard enough itself,” said Landeros. “Having people like Mike Pence and his supporters [at UNC] furthers the message that we are not welcome here. But we will not leave: instead, we will persevere together. We are the mere catalysts of what it to come for Latinas on this campus.”
First-year student Carlynn Dotson said she was drawn to attend the protest because she felt like that group is accepting and welcoming of others. Describing her experience moving to UNC from a small town, she said she supports policies focused more on inclusion and human rights compared to ones based on “hate speech.”
“It makes you feel less alone in such a large world,” Dotson said the Young Democrats’ gathering. “Because, whenever you’re only surrounded by hate, you begin to feel that. That indoctrinated hate, that indoctrinated racism put out into society. Whenever you realize that is not how everyone feels, it really changes who you are and makes you feel less alone with your identity.”
Editor’s Note: A previous version of the story stated Hadad said he held “more conservative beliefs.” That language has been deleted.
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Not to worry kiddies, Mike Pence hasn’t conserved a single thing in his life except his political sinecures.
“I think that should be restricted and I think the university should have a role in subverting, changing, or stopping that message.”
This is someone who fundamentally does not understand. The charge of the university is to offer exposure to a wide array of ideas, not only the ones we already approve of or that feel safe. It is incumbent upon students to apply critical thinking skills to separate the good from the bad, in their estimation. Anyone can conjure an extreme example that is, of course, not something that should enjoy a hearing on the grounds of a public university, but to presume that someone who is a former Vice President is too dangerous is the height of hubris.
By all means, speak out for change. Speak up against injustice. When you reach the point that you are so fearful of other opinions that you feel they should not even be heard, you are trying to impose you will upon everyone. One of the remaining beauties of this country is that we remain free to think our own thoughts and consider opinions unlike our own.