An Oklahoma State University student leader says he was reprimanded by a university employee after delivering a speech honoring slain conservative activist Charlie Kirk.

Josh Wilson, a junior who serves in the Senate for OSU’s Student Government Association (SGA), spoke during a Sept. 10 SGA meeting, shortly after Turning Point USA founder was shot and killed in Utah. According to comments first reported by conservative think tank the Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs (OCPA), Wilson acknowledged Kirk’s impact on campus debate and free speech.

Wilson, who also serves as president of the OSU Debate Society and previously volunteered with Turning Point USA, said Kirk’s visit to campus in April “provoke[d] discussion and dialogue among countless students on this campus” and students were engaging in conversations about culture and politics “like never before.”

During the Sept. 10 meeting, Wilson described Kirk as “a father, a husband, a devout Christian, and a shining light for so many,” and urged students to “carry forward his legacy by refusing to shy away from difficult conversations, by standing firm in our convictions, and by remembering that true progress begins with dialogue.”

‘FEARLESS’ TOUR TAKES CHARLIE KIRK’S FREE SPEECH MISSION TO COLLEGES NATIONWIDE

Wilson said he wore a Turning Point USA hat that Kirk had given him during his April visit to his campus. The hat displayed the numbers “45” and “47,” a reference to President Donald Trump.

According to the report, Wilson did not mention Trump or endorse a political party or candidate for election during his speech.

He told Fox News Digital that the speech was well received, with students applauding and several reaching out afterward to express their appreciation for his remarks.

The following week, Wilson said he was called into a meeting with Melisa Echols, OSU’s coordinator of student government programs. According to OCPA, Echols told him the hat violated student government’s nonpartisan rules and that some people could be “triggered” by it.

“As a person who doesn’t look like you and has not had the same lived experience as you, I have family who don’t look like you who are triggered — and I will be very candid with you — who are triggered by those hats and by that side,” Echols said, according to OCPA’s report and an audio recording it obtained.

UNIVERSITIES CRACK DOWN ON EMPLOYEE SOCIAL MEDIA POSTS CELEBRATING, DEFENDING KIRK’S DEATH

An Oklahoma State staff employee reportedly told a student leader his pro-Trump hat during a Charlie Kirk tribute was partisan and could “trigger” others. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

She added, “I would challenge you to ask others who don’t look like you” and “have open conversations with anyone that has a different lived experience and see what, if anything, that might do for someone else, aside from someone who is politically aligned the same as you.”

Wilson said that he reminded Echols he has Cherokee heritage and regularly interacts with people from diverse backgrounds.

“I don’t like to pull that card,” he told the OCPA, “but if you’re going to pull that card on me, I might as well.”

Wilson told Echols that he didn’t believe it was harmful or partisan given the context of his speech. He said that he was standing up for freedom of expression on campus.

“Any student in general should have the liberty and not show any fear of expressing their thoughts and ideas,” he told Echols, according to the report. “[I]dea and conversation is what built this country, and it’s what should maintain it. And that’s what the hat was there for.”

COLLEGES WARNED NOT TO INVOKE CHARLIE KIRK’S DEATH TO SILENCE FREE SPEECH, UNFAIRLY HIKE SECURITY COSTS

According to the recording, Echols rejected Wilson’s argument, telling him, “‘But’ cannot be the end of every statement. That’s not a learned lesson. It cannot just be, ‘yes, but’ — cannot be every response that you give me. Otherwise, this year is going to be difficult for you.”

Wilson told OCPA he viewed that remark as “a veiled threat.”

Echols did not respond to Fox News Digital‘s request for comment.

Wilson told Fox News Digital he hopes students will feel comfortable expressing their views openly on campus without fear of backlash.

“I just hope that in and outside of student government, our community can come together and just discuss things again, instead of feeling threatened by one another… like Charlie’s mission was set out to do,” he said.

Oklahoma State University Vice President of Student Affairs Brent Marsh issued the following statement emphasizing the school’s commitment to free expression.

“The position of Oklahoma State University on freedom of speech is unchanged and crystal clear: All OSU students have the right to speak their minds on all of our campuses,” the statement began.

“Our Student Government Association is a democratically elected body where students represent their peers, share their ideas, debate proposals and work toward solutions. That process only works when every voice can be heard without fear or restriction. Protecting free expression is fundamental to who we are as a university. The student who recently raised concerns exercised these very rights when he, along with another senator, shared their personal thoughts during the September SGA meeting, which occurred on the same day as the tragic assassination of Charlie Kirk. These senators spoke without interruption, just as it should be.”

“All staff charged with supporting student groups have received direct clarification about our policies and our unwavering commitment to free speech and our expectation that every student can fully express themselves.”

Kirk, 31, had just launched his “American Comeback Tour” at Utah Valley University on Sept. 10 and was answering questions when he was shot and killed. A suspect, 22-year-old Tyler Robinson, was arrested for the murder last month.

Kirk’s assassination has sparked a renewed interest in campus debate, with Turning Point USA saying it has received more than 120,000 new chapter requests.

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton on Tuesday announced that he has launched undercover investigations to infiltrate and uproot leftist terror cells following high-profile incidents of political violence.

Paxton cited the assassination of Charlie Kirk and the “disturbing rise of leftist violence” across the country.

“Leftist political terrorism is a clear and present danger. Corrupted ideologies like transgenderism and Antifa are a cancer on our culture and have unleashed their deranged and drugged-up foot soldiers on the American people,” he said.

CHARLIE KIRK KILLING PUTS RISE IN LEFT-WING TERROR IN SPOTLIGHT AS STUDY SHOWS VIOLENCE HITTING 30-YEAR HIGH

“The martyrdom of Charlie Kirk marks a turning point in America,” Paxton added. “There can be no compromise with those who want us dead. To that end, I have directed my office to continue its efforts to identify, investigate, and infiltrate these leftist terror cells. To those demented souls who seek to kill, steal, and destroy our country, know this: you cannot hide, you cannot escape, and justice is coming.”

Paxton said the radical left has “incubated” an environment where political violence is celebrated and praised.

He cited nearly two dozen people allegedly linked to Texas-based Antifa-like groups who are accused of ambushing an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facility in Alvarado, Texas.

DAVID MARCUS: WHY ANTIFA IS SO MUCH MORE DANGEROUS THAN OLD-SCHOOL LEFTIST TERRORISTS

Antifa protesters at a rally. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton on Tuesday announced the launching of investigations into leftist terror cells in Texas amid an increase in political violence.  (Mark Graves/The Oregonian/via AP)

Paxton also noted the Sept. 10 murder of Kirk at a Utah college campus and the shooting at an ICE facility in Dallas.

President Donald Trump has designated Antifa as a domestic terrorist organization while directing federal agencies to investigate, disrupt, and dismantle the groups involved.

“Building on President Trump’s bold actions, Attorney General Paxton has instructed his office to initiate sweeping investigations into radical leftist organizations engaged in or providing support to those perpetrating political violence,” Paxton’s office said.

Law enforcement agents look around the roof of a building near the scene of a shooting at a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement office in Dallas, Texas, on Wednesday, Sept. 24, 2025. (Julio Cortez)

The Trump administration has taken a hard stand against political violence following Kirk’s assassination. However, a federal judge recently blocked him from deploying the National Guard to Portland, Oregon, where protesters have targeted ICE facilities.

Texas National Guard troops arrived in Illinois on Tuesday to protect federal personnel and property amid anti-immigration protests, the Pentagon confirmed.

A Pentagon official said 200 guardsmen were mobilized for an initial 60-day period.

Troops arrived in Illinois “in support of the Federal Protection Mission to protect federal functions, personnel, and property,” according to a Pentagon statement.

PRITZKER SUES TRUMP TO BLOCK NATIONAL GUARD ACTION IN ILLINOIS

About a dozen people have been arrested near an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facility in Broadview, where anti-immigration crowds have been gathering for days.

Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem announced on Saturday that additional special operations personnel would be deployed to Illinois after federal agents were rammed and boxed in by 10 cars.

PRITZKER SAYS TRUMP ORDERING 400 MEMBERS OF THE TEXAS NATIONAL GUARD TO ILLINOIS, OREGON AND OTHER LOCATIONS

Fox News cameras captured footage Tuesday afternoon outside the Army Reserve Training Center in Elwood, just south of Joliet, showing several National Guard troops on site.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott posted to X, noting service members are “on the ground and ready to go.”

“They are putting America first by ensuring that the federal government can safely enforce federal law,” Abbott wrote.

A federal agent sits in a vehicle outside the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) building Wednesday, Sept. 24, 2025, in Broadview, Illinois.  (AP Photo/Erin Hooley)

Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson reiterated on Tuesday he believes the deployment is “illegal, unconstitutional, dangerous and wrong.”

In an executive order signed Monday, Johnson created “ICE-free zones,” prohibiting federal immigration agents from using city-owned property for immigration enforcement operations.

“The Trump administration must end the war on Chicago,” Johnson said during a news conference Monday. “The Trump administration must end this war against Americans. The Trump administration must end its attempt to dismantle our democracy.”

HUNDREDS OF FEDERAL AGENTS IN CHICAGO CARRY OUT OPERATION TARGETING SUSPECTED TREN DE ARAGUA GANG MEMBERS

Federal law enforcement arrive near an Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in Broadview, Illinois, on Friday, Oct. 3, 2025.  (AP/Erin Hooley)

The Coalition Against the Trump Agenda (CATA), a Chicago-based activist group, planned an emergency protest in downtown Chicago set for Wednesday afternoon.

Hatem Abudayyeh, National Chair of the U.S. Palestinian Community Network (USPCN) and a spokesperson for CATA, told Fox News Digital the group “stand[s] united in fighting back against [President Donald] Trump’s racist and white supremacist attacks on our communities.”

“The Guard has been sent to join ICE in wreaking havoc and terrorizing our neighborhoods, because Chicagoans don’t back down from bullies like Trump,” Abudayyeh wrote in a statement to Fox News Digital. “Our communities here—especially Mexicanos, Centroamericanos, and Black people—are organizing, resisting, and mobilizing in massive numbers for protests, community education and Know Your Rights presentations, and rapid response teams (led by the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights [ICIRR]) that defend our immigrant neighbors directly from ICE. We will continue to resist together, unified across race and class and nationality, and they will never break us down!”

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP

Fox News Digital’s Deirdre Heavey contributed to this report.