A Loyola University New Orleans student, who has been twice thwarted in her efforts to establish a Turning Point USA chapter on campus, has pledged to continue her fight. This commitment was made during the annual AmericaFest conference hosted by the conservative group.
Freshman Anistin Murray, attending the Catholic institution in New Orleans, has been persistently working alongside two other potential co-founders to gain approval for the club amidst resistance from the university’s student government association (SGA). The SGA has consistently opposed the presence of Turning Point on their campus.
The initial rejection of the TPUSA chapter occurred on October 15. In response, Murray and her co-founders sought assistance from law students at Loyola New Orleans to file an appeal, arguing that the decision was based on subjective grounds.
“The reasoning behind their decision was mostly subjective,” explained Ethan Estis, a law student, in an interview with Fox News Digital. “They didn’t anchor their decision in any specific laws or regulations they are supposed to adhere to—it was all subjective. That was the foundation of our written appeal,” he added.
Anistin Murray, the student at the center of the battle to establish a Turning Point USA chapter, is pictured beside a TPUSA banner at the AmericaFest event in Phoenix on December 19, 2025. (Photo by Peter D’Abrosca/Fox News Digital)
Though their appeal saw success in the university’s Court of Review, which sent the case back to the SGA, the student government once more rejected the proposal after a second review in December, maintaining its stance against the conservative group.
“They said that, you know, it does make a lot of the students feel uncomfortable and that it will bring a lot of hate and negativity and all this disruption to the university, which I find quite sad because that’s not what an organization is meant to push,” Murray told Fox News Digital at AmericaFest in Phoenix.
“You know, they say that they stand for the majority of the students and the student body at Loyola, but I think to undermine that, there were people who voted yes to have a Turning Point at Loyola,” she said, adding that she feels like students who agree with TPUSA’s values have been silenced.
Murray said that Turning Point stands for dialogue, not hatred.
“Just because people disagree with us does not mean that there needs to be uncivil discourse,” she said. “Like, we can talk civilly and understand that we disagree, but we’re hearing each other and understanding that we both come from different places, and I think that was the biggest part for [the SGA], and that was a very important question that got reiterated a lot.”
Student Turning Point USA leaders speak on a panel during the organization’s annual AmericaFest event on Dec. 19, 2025 in Phoenix, Arizona. (Peter D’Abrosca/Fox News Digital)
Murray said that the group is formulating a plan of action to proceed, despite the two denials.
A representative from the school previously told Fox News Digital that there is no limit to how many times the Turning Point students can appeal the SGA’s decision.
Despite the denials, Murray remains undeterred. She wants to work with the school to find a positive solution. Part of moving forward, she said, includes having a conversation with the school on how to proceed within the university’s guidelines.
“We don’t want to step on our university’s toes, but we are not backing down,” said Murray.
“These people who are against us need to understand that just because they’re against us, we’re not against them. Turning Point is not just an outlet for conservative believers, but Turning Point does have faithfully driven values that do align with conservative values.
“Having this critical deliberation is the sense of learning and growing and what we need on this university’s campus.”
A group of attendees in a breakout session about expanding Turning Point USA on college and high school campuses during AmericaFest in Phoenix on Dec. 19, 2025. (Peter D’Abrosca/Fox News Digital)
Loyola New Orleans told Fox News Digital that there are currently no updates on the situation.
“Following the December 3 appeal process, the Student Government Association Senate voted to deny the charter application, and the SGA President upheld the decision,” the school said. “The students may pursue an additional appeal in the spring semester, and no new materials have been submitted since the SGA President upheld the decision.”
The SGA has not responded to multiple requests for comment.
