Before Charlie Kirk was assassinated on a college campus last September, activists had spent years trying to silence him through pressure campaigns. Nearly 1,000 students signed a petition demanding that Utah Valley University cancel his final appearance. The school said no — and stood by free speech.
Now, that same pressure playbook is being used to drive Border Patrol recruiters off Nevada campuses. This time, the schools caved.
What Happened at CSN and UNLV
Border Patrol had been a regular participant at College of Southern Nevada career fairs for years. When activists demanded they be excluded this month, CSN President Stacy Klippenstein initially did the right thing.
He told the campus community that Border Patrol:
“is a longstanding partner in our career fairs and is scheduled to be at others in Southern Nevada.”
That should have been the end of it.
But the pressure kept coming: Students and staff organized and complaints piled up. By Tuesday, Klippenstein announced Border Patrol had withdrawn.
He put a nice face on it, writing that he:
“appreciated their understanding of the concerns and their decision to withdraw from the fair.”
Border Patrol explained their own reasoning. They told CSN leadership they:
“had no desire to negatively impact the success of the career fair.”
A federal law enforcement agency — one responsible for securing America’s borders — backed down to avoid a scene at a community college career fair.
Then the same thing happened at UNLV.
The Las Vegas Democratic Socialists of America ran a letter-writing campaign through an activist website. The form described Border Patrol as “fueling the fascist war machine” and called on students to “not allow CBP to exist on our campuses in peace.” Over 400 letters flooded in, and UNLV caved too.
This Is Bigger Than Nevada
The same playbook is running on campuses across the country. Border Patrol was pushed out of career fairs at Ohio State, Villanova, and the University of Maine. At Ohio State, two students and a staff member were arrested for criminal trespass after protesters disrupted the event. Border Patrol left 30 minutes in.
This is exactly the pattern conservatives have watched play out for years. Make noise, claim safety concerns, and force the target out the door.
Before Kirk was assassinated, a Turning Point USA event in Seattle was canceled after violent threats. Another in Oregon was shut down the same way. The pressure campaigns don’t always require threats. Sometimes, just enough organized noise is enough to make administrators fold.
Why This Matters
Border Patrol is a legitimate federal law enforcement agency. Its agents guard our borders, stop drug smugglers, and intercept human traffickers. Recruiting good people into those jobs matters for national security.
President Trump has made border security a top priority. Congress directed roughly $170 billion toward enforcement, and Border Patrol is offering recruiting bonuses of up to $60,000 to attract new officers. College career fairs are a primary pipeline for that hiring.
When activist mobs shut down that pipeline at taxpayer-funded institutions, they aren’t just scoring a political point. They are actively undermining border security.
This is also a free speech and fairness issue: Nevada taxpayers fund both CSN and UNLV.
Using organized pressure campaigns to exclude a lawful federal employer from a career fair is viewpoint discrimination, plain and simple. If a conservative student wanted to talk to a Border Patrol recruiter at their own school’s career fair, that option just got taken away by a vocal minority.
What Critics Are Saying
Activists celebrated the outcome. The Nevada Immigrant Coalition praised CSN students for:
“speaking out and demanding a safer campus.”
Safer from job recruiters with brochures?
Meanwhile, Nevada’s Democratic U.S. Senators Catherine Cortez Masto and Jacky Rosen are using DHS funding as leverage, refusing to vote for the agency’s budget unless immigration agencies adopt reforms, including body cameras and other restrictions.
Rep. Mark Amodei, who chairs the House Homeland Security Appropriations Subcommittee, accused Democrats last week of wanting to:
“weaken immigration enforcement in exchange for keeping DHS funded.”
He’s right to call it out.
What Comes Next
Spring career fair season is in full swing. Activists are already targeting campuses nationwide. If Border Patrol keeps backing down, that signals every pressure group in the country that the tactic works.
Here’s what you can do. Contact CSN and UNLV leadership and tell them that taxpayer-funded schools should not bow to activist pressure campaigns.
Call or write Rep. Amodei’s office and encourage him to keep pushing back. And if you know a young Nevadan interested in a federal law enforcement career, point them directly to careers.cbp.gov — don’t let the mob close that door for them.
Utah Valley University stood firm for free speech and open debate right up until the day Charlie Kirk was killed on their campus. Nevada’s colleges couldn’t even hold the line for a career fair.
The opinions expressed by contributors are their own and do not necessarily represent the views of Nevada News & Views. This article was written with the assistance of AI. Please verify information and consult additional sources as needed.
