Many students came together to protest the ‘Real Women’s Day’ event hosted by the right-wing student organization Turning Points USA on campus on Oct. 10. 

The ‘Real Women’s Day’ touted itself as celebrating only ‘real women’, specifically biological women with two x chromosomes.

The event was specifically targeted against Trans women. At the event, Turning Point USA field representative Annette Lees took photos in front of student protesters with a sign that said “XX does not equal XY.”

Numerous clubs on campus protested the event outside Stevenson Hall, including the Women and Gender Studies Club and Queer Student Alliance of SSU.

Shawn Ramus, the Women and Gender Studies Club president, said the protest was important for event organizers “to know that the students here don’t want a hate group on campus.”

More than 50 students protested with pride flags and banners. However, due to the recent installment of the Time, Manner, and Place policy, the protest was restricted to sections of the lawn outside of Stevenson. In addition, protesters had to be quiet to avoid disrupting campus operations. 

The Turning Points USA event was approved by the campus despite being in violation of the campuses non-discrimination policy due to its targeted campaign against transgender women. 

The only guest speaker at the event was Paula Scanlan, a former University of Pennsylvania swimmer, who spoke out against her openly-trans swimate Lia Thomas. Thomas was the center of debate about Trans women competing in women’s sports in 2021, as anonymous parents wrote to University of Pennsylvania to have Thomas removed from the NCAA. 

Turning Points USA also had posters that referenced Genesis 5:2 from the bible, which said, “he created them male and female and blessed them.”

Turning Point USA members on campus declined to comment.