Candace Owens‘ group, Blexit, were escorted off of Hampton University’s campus after they tried to host an unauthorized homecoming event.
Per Blavity, the group has been hosting the “Educate to Liberate” tour at 10 HBCUs across the country. Blexit’s tour specifically takes place during their homecoming celebrations, part of an effort to recruit Black college-age voters. According to the Pew Research Center, about 83% of Black voters are Democrats or lean liberal.
The group claims it was silenced by the university, per InsideHigherEd. Hampton leaders say Blexit didn’t follow proper protocols for visiting the campus.
Craig Long, a Blexit member, claimed on Instagram that Hampton University shut down the group’s dialogue with students.
“Instead of celebrating that spirit of open discussion, the university shut it down—claiming we ‘didn’t go through the proper channels,’” Long wrote. “Let’s be honest: this wasn’t about paperwork. It was about politics. We were silenced because we are Blexit—because we stand for Christian values, conservative principles, and independent thought that challenge the mainstream narrative.”
Hampton Responds
Hampton leaders pushed back on Blexit’s claims of being “silenced.” In a statement the school said that Blexit didn’t complete the application to participate in homecoming as a vendor or pay the associated fees. Out of 36 vendor applications submitted, the university approved 18, and Blexit “was among those that did not meet the stated requirements,” according to the statement. Those vendors were notified the week before the event that they would not be allowed on campus. University leaders framed the procedures as a “matter of public safety” to know who’s on campus, with nearly 15,000 people visiting for homecoming.
Originally founded by conservative commentators Candace Owens and Brandon Tatum, Blexit has over 50 chapters and 300 “city hubs,” according to the group’s website, which is adorned with quotes from Maya Angelou, Martin Luther King Jr. and conservative talk show host Larry Elder. It’s affiliated with Turning Point USA, the conservative student group co-founded by the late Charlie Kirk.
“Blexit is a Renaissance,” Owens told Fox News in 2018. “Blexit is the black exit from the Democratic Party. It’s the black exit from permanent victimhood, the black exit from the false idea that we are somehow separate from the rest of America.”