Brilyn Hollyhand, 19, spoke at Samford University on Oct. 2, 2025. He was hosted by Samford’s chapter of Turning Point USA (TPUSA). This was the first event the chapter has hosted since the assassination of the national organization’s founder Charlie Kirk on Sept. 10.
Samford was the fourth stop on Hollyhand’s “One Conversation At A Time” tour, which was inspired by Kirk’s assassination.
“Charlie famously said in one of his last speeches that the day that civil discourse dies, America goes to civil war,” Hollyhand said. “That’s why I’m spending the first semester of my freshman year doing the last thing I thought I’d be doing, going to other college campuses and talking to other students.”
Hollyhand, who is a freshman at Auburn University, spoke about the political divide in the country at the moment and what the youth can do to amend it.
“The reason that my friend Charlie was shot three weeks ago yesterday is because our generation doesn’t know how to talk to each other,” said Hollyhand. “We know how to assassinate somebody, we sure know how to scream at somebody, but we don’t know how to have a conversation with somebody.”
Hollyhand credited the political divide to the death of civil discourse; however, early in his speech, he set up a strawman argument using popular liberal stereotypes.
“Unlike my peers on the left, when I grew frustrated, I didn’t go to my local hair salon, dye my hair blue [and] get a nose ring,” said Hollyhand. “I decided to do something a little bit more productive with that frustration.”
Hollyhand used this as a jumping off point to describe how he first became invested in politics at a young age. His entrance into the political world began with listening and learning.
At 11 years old, he wrote a newsletter (that he joked “was sent to seven friends and family members”) that inspired him to pursue a career in writing. Today, Hollyhand has published a book and continues to write his newsletter now at 19 years old.
The event was RSVP only, with 240 spots available. It was held in Brock Forum in Brooks Hall, where five Samford police officers were present for event security. TPUSA members checked Samford students’ IDs at the door.
Different members of the Birmingham community beyond Samford students were in attendance. The president of the University of Alabama at Birmingham’s TPUSA chapter, the field advisors for collegiate and high school TPUSA chapters, along with various high schoolers and adults were all in attendance.
Samford’s TPUSA chapter will be back to holding regular meetings on Friday, Oct. 10 at 5 p.m.
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