Louisiana lawmaker calls for funding freeze until Tulane, Loyola take action to protect students’ free speech

BATON ROUGE, La. (Louisiana First) — A Louisiana lawmaker is calling on state leaders to take action after two Louisiana universities allegedly denied students the opportunity to form Turning Point USA chapters.

State Representative Dixon McMakin (R–District 68) sent a letter to

Attorney General Elizabeth Murrill and State Treasurer Dr. John Fleming, urging them to respond to what he called a “deeply troubling” situation at Tulane University and Loyola University New Orleans.

McMakin described the schools’ actions as “a clear attempt to curtail conservative perspectives on campus.” He cited the Louisiana Constitution of 1974, which prohibits discrimination based on political ideas or affiliations.

In his letter, McMakin asked the state to freeze all current funding and pause any Capital Outlay dollars going to Tulane and Loyola until the institutions demonstrate “clear and concrete action” to protect students’ rights to free expression and association.

“The people of our state have said time and time again that they will not stand for the unfair suppression of conservative viewpoints,” McMakin said. “If these universities are going to suppress conservative perspectives, the taxpayers of Louisiana should not be subsidizing their operations in any way.”

The representative also requested an investigation into whether the universities’ actions violated the U.S. or the Louisiana Constitution.

“Higher education should be a place where students can freely exchange ideas,” McMakin said. “Denying students the right to form a peaceful political organization runs contrary to both state law and the very mission these universities claim to uphold.”

McMakin’s letter followed a post by Governor Jeff Landry, who expressed similar concerns on social media the day before.

The lawmaker said he hopes both universities “return to their lofty ideals and admirable purpose.”

Loyola University releases statement

“Loyola University New Orleans fully supports our students’ rights to free expression and association. The decision regarding Turning Point USA was made by the Student Government Association, our elected student governing body, through its established peer-to-peer chartering process. While SGA decided not to grant official recognition, that decision does not restrict students’ ability to meet, organize, or share their views. The university’s role is to ensure that the student organization chartering process is followed correctly and fairly, consistent with our Jesuit values and our commitment to dialogue and understanding across differences,” said Loyola University New Orleans Media and Public Relations Manager Christine Harvey.

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