Adrianna Rodriguez, USA TODAY•February 18, 2020
Kent State gun girl says students at Ohio University threw beverages at her during unexpected trip
Corrections & Clarifications: An earlier version of this article misstated the location of where the embedded video was taken.
Gun rights activist and Kent State graduate Kaitlin Bennett was greeted by a crowd of screaming protesters Monday when she visited Ohio University.
Bennett came to internet fame for taking a celebratory stroll around campus carrying a semi-automatic rifle after her graduation from Kent State University in 2018.
A video she posted on Twitter, referring to it as a “riot,” showed a crowd of students yelling and throwing drinks at her car as they drove slowly through the campus.
“This is what happens when a Trump supporter goes to a college campus,” she said. “I think @realDonaldTrump should strip funding from universities like this that harbor terrorists.”
Ohio University Police said in a statement they posted on Twitter that Bennett never notified police of her visit.
“Although such notice is not required, the lack of it deprived the department of the ability to plan staffing levels,” the statement read.
They also rejected Bennett’s claim that the crowd had risen to the level of a “riot” and assured that officers were present throughout the entire incident to “protect everyone’s rights and safety.”
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According to The Athens News, the social media personality visited the campus with staff from her libertarian group “Liberty Hangout” to film a video asking students trivia questions about Presidents Day.
Students at other schools also posted their own TikTok videos of Bennett visiting their campus, including a man who played drums in front of her cameraman as she was filming at the University of Akron.
this guy playing the drums to drone kaitlin bennett out is my hero pic.twitter.com/p8jc9MlBwn
— arianna ◡̈ (@styIesradiance) February 12, 2020
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Bennett, who was a gun-rights organizer during her time as a student, went to the Kent State campus and shared photos of herself walking around with an AR-10 across her back and a graduation cap reading, “come and take it.” As a student, Bennett was prohibited from carrying a firearm on campus, but after graduating, she was considered a visitor and legally permitted to carry the rifle.
A couple of months later, she challenged Parkland shooting survivor David Hogg to an arm-wrestling match to determine the fate of the Second Amendment. He never responded to her post.
Kent State 'gun girl' claims students started a riot over her - police say they did not
Graig Graziosi, The Independent•February 18, 2020
A supporter of Michigan's Open Carry law attends a rally and march April 27, 2014 in Romulus, Michigan: Photo by Bill Pugliano/Getty Images
A campus protest against the “Kent State gun girl” Kaitlin Bennett was not “a riot,” according to Ohio University police.
Ms Bennett, who helps run a conservative website called Liberty Hangout and who often appears on Alex Jones’ InfoWars programs, was driven off the campus of Ohio University in Athens, Ohio on Monday by a student protest according to the Athens News.
She said the students “started a riot” and claims the police “let it happen.”
“This is what happens when a Trump supporter goes to a college campus,” she tweeted. “Leftists at @Ohiou started a riot when @joelpatrick1776 and I showed up, and the @oupolice let it happen. I think @realDonaldTrump should strip funding from universities like this that harbor terrorists.”
Ms Bennett is best known for open-carrying an AR-10 rifle during her graduation from Kent State University.
This is what happens when a Trump supporter goes to a college campus. Leftists at @ohiou started a riot when @Joelpatrick1776 and I showed up, and the @oupolice let it happen. I think @realDonaldTrump should strip funding from universities like this that harbor terrorists. pic.twitter.com/5TMlfdto9O
— Kaitlin Bennett (@KaitMarieox)
February 17, 2020
Ohio University police rejected Ms Bennett’s claim in a statement issued Monday.
“Early this afternoon an activist appeared unexpectedly on the Ohio University campus in Athens and engaged in Constitutionally protected activity. She drew a large crowd of people, many with opposing viewpoints, who also chose to exercise their first amendment rights,” the statement read. “Ohio University police officers were present throughout the incident to protect everyone’s rights and safety; other than keeping streets and other public rights of way clear, no police officers asked anyone to leave at any point.”
The statement continued:
“Contrary to allegations circulating on social media, the incident did not rise to the level of a riot. There was strong language, and allegations that some unknown person(s) in the crowd splashed water, but there were no reported injuries or violence, and no one was arrested during the event.”
Ms Bennett said she would return to campus with “an army of gun owners for an open carry walk.”
She went on to complain that the protesters had “thrown projectiles and poured hot coffee on us.”
Ms Bennett was met on Twitter with the usual pushback from liberal and leftist accounts, but she was also condemned by the Libertarian Party for calling the college students who protested her “terrorists.”
Ms. Bennett, you have a right to your opinion, and a right to voice it.
These college students do as well.
Calling them "terrorists" because they utilized their right to assembly and speech is both dishonest and shameful.
— Libertarian Party (@LPNational)
February 18, 2020
A campus protest against the “Kent State gun girl” Kaitlin Bennett was not “a riot,” according to Ohio University police.
Ms Bennett, who helps run a conservative website called Liberty Hangout and who often appears on Alex Jones’ InfoWars programs, was driven off the campus of Ohio University in Athens, Ohio on Monday by a student protest according to the Athens News.
She said the students “started a riot” and claims the police “let it happen.”
“This is what happens when a Trump supporter goes to a college campus,” she tweeted. “Leftists at @Ohiou started a riot when @joelpatrick1776 and I showed up, and the @oupolice let it happen. I think @realDonaldTrump should strip funding from universities like this that harbor terrorists.”
Ms Bennett is best known for open-carrying an AR-10 rifle during her graduation from Kent State University.
This is what happens when a Trump supporter goes to a college campus. Leftists at @ohiou started a riot when @Joelpatrick1776 and I showed up, and the @oupolice let it happen. I think @realDonaldTrump should strip funding from universities like this that harbor terrorists. pic.twitter.com/5TMlfdto9O
— Kaitlin Bennett (@KaitMarieox)
February 17, 2020
Ohio University police rejected Ms Bennett’s claim in a statement issued Monday.
“Early this afternoon an activist appeared unexpectedly on the Ohio University campus in Athens and engaged in Constitutionally protected activity. She drew a large crowd of people, many with opposing viewpoints, who also chose to exercise their first amendment rights,” the statement read. “Ohio University police officers were present throughout the incident to protect everyone’s rights and safety; other than keeping streets and other public rights of way clear, no police officers asked anyone to leave at any point.”
The statement continued:
“Contrary to allegations circulating on social media, the incident did not rise to the level of a riot. There was strong language, and allegations that some unknown person(s) in the crowd splashed water, but there were no reported injuries or violence, and no one was arrested during the event.”
Ms Bennett said she would return to campus with “an army of gun owners for an open carry walk.”
She went on to complain that the protesters had “thrown projectiles and poured hot coffee on us.”
Ms Bennett was met on Twitter with the usual pushback from liberal and leftist accounts, but she was also condemned by the Libertarian Party for calling the college students who protested her “terrorists.”
Ms. Bennett, you have a right to your opinion, and a right to voice it.
These college students do as well.
Calling them "terrorists" because they utilized their right to assembly and speech is both dishonest and shameful.
— Libertarian Party (@LPNational)
February 18, 2020
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