Louisiana Gov. Landry’s Statue Proposal at LSU Draws Mixed Reactions

BATON ROUGE, LA (KPEL) — Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry has sparked a controversial conversation after posting on social media about erecting a statue of conservative commentator Charlie Kirk at Louisiana State University.

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The post was shared on X after the 'This is Turning Point Tour' made a stop in Baton Rouge on Monday. Governor Landry wrote:

"I’m calling on @LSU to honor the legacy of Charlie Kirk by putting up a statue of him on campus. There is no better warrior for free speech than Charlie Kirk, and we must continue his legacy on every campus in America."

Commenters weighed in, questioning Kirk's affiliation with the university. Tigerfightfan wrote, "Why? What happened to him was tragic, but he has no connection to our school that I am aware of. How about Burrow gets a statue first? He actually did work for our university."

Triple D joked, "That's one way to make people forget about the tiger," referencing when Gov. Landry pulled some strings to bring Mike the Tiger back out into Death Valley, despite many fans not seeing the need to bring back the tradition.

Other commenters pointed out that Kirk often called college a "federally sponsored scam," so erecting a statue of him on a college campus wouldn't even align with his wishes.

Of course, there are Turining Point USA supporters who think the statue would highlight his mission to champion open debate on college campuses nationwide.

LSU has not responded to the request or the social media post as of Tuesday afternoon.

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