By Elliott Nace | Assistant News Editor
Pro-life demonstrators joined students at 6 p.m. outside of the Mark and Paula Hurd Welcome Center ahead of Texas Senate candidate James Talarico’s campaign event Wednesday. BUPD moved the protest to the sidewalk. It dissolved soon after.
Students attending the event, whether to protest or support Talarico’s campaign, held conflicting views on whether Talarico and his opponent Ken Paxton’s Christian values will be the deciding factor at the ballot box.
Atlanta, Texas, sophomore and Bears for Life President Makenzie Lampshire saw a peaceful protest as a natural response to Talarico campaigning on campus, given Talarico’s pro-choice stance on the abortion issue.
“[Life has] always been at stake, but even more so now,” Lampshire said. “Everybody has different views on what should be and should not be normalized, but at the end of the day, the pro-life movement [is] really advocating for life and saving life, and everybody views that differently.”
According to an article hosted by The Texas Tribune and first published by The 19th, “Paxton’s record indicates that, if elected, he could be one of the nation’s most anti-abortion senators,” while “Talarico’s campaign has largely focused on other issues,” despite the latter’s repeated criticism of Texas’ near-total ban on abortion.
Although Brownsville junior Santiago Villafranca heard about Talarico’s campaign event through an advertisement and had seen him speak online, he wanted to hear the state representative speak for himself.
“Because we are a Christian community, I want to see what [Talarico] would say here compared to what he would say elsewhere,” Villafranca said.
Lampshire said it is difficult to advocate for a pro-life position due to disagreements over what constitutes Christianity.
“It’s hard to put rules and regulations around what should be rightfully represented, especially because people have the freedom to have different views,” Lampshire said.
Houston junior and Bears for Life Vice President Payton Carey said her organization protested the event to amplify the voices of the unborn by educating voters, especially since recent poll reports position Talarico ahead of Paxton. Carey also said that Talarico’s weaponization of his faith on social issues concerned her heading into the November election.
“I don’t think a lot of these sociopolitical issues [Talarico’s] addressing can be justified by his faith,” Carey said. “God created each and every one of us intentionally; our conception is not an accident. We think that’s really important for people to be educated [in], specifically at Baylor.”
The conflict over which candidate better embodies Christian values, according to Villafranca, is a distinctly Texan issue.
“I think some of what Paxton says has resonated with me a little bit, especially with [Christianity],” Villafranca said. “It feels like a lot of politicians now just use Jesus to throw his name around.”
Carey said voters need to educate themselves on specific policy issues because Talarico is “a very well-spoken man” who “presents himself well.”
“I think specifically in the Baylor bubble, it’s important that students here, especially [those] who are coming from a Christian perspective, are understanding that some of [Talarico’s] views don’t align with their religious beliefs,” Carey said.
Honolulu freshman Ascher Van Zee came to listen to Talarico “to see an event from the other side” despite describing himself as an ideological conservative.
Van Zee, who grew up in a Christian household but is not particularly religious, said he supports Paxton for his political track record.
As he finalizes his decision, Villafranca said he would be best convinced to vote for Talarico if his campaign focuses on nationally relevant issues.
“I would just want [Talarico] to strictly state his policies rather than just appeal to us because we are a Christian school,” Villafranca said.
Carey said Talarico’s presence was fair to hold due to Paxton’s appearance at a Turning Point USA speaker event this past April, and that “[Paxton’s] opposition should also have the opportunity to speak his mind.”
“I think it’s a good opportunity for [Talarico] to clearly and explicitly state his beliefs,” Carey said. “At least I hope that he does, so that people can more clearly see what he’s saying, and especially if they’re coming from [a] Christian perspective, can maybe hold up some of his views to the light of what Christ has to say about some of these issues.”
Van Zee said Talarico could flip his vote if he was “honest about his character.”
“I’m tired of politicians hiding behind barriers and changing their motives every single interview,” Van Zee said. “Be honest to who you are and stop with the attack ads constantly. Build a platform on your beliefs and don’t lie about them just to win. That’s not that’s the not point of politics. Win the people.”
Although Paxton has addressed the abortion issue through legislative action, Lampshire said his stance on the issue needs to come up more toward the end of this election cycle.
“I think that it needs to be very clear on [Paxton’s] stance and how that would affect the community right now, Bears for Lifeand the stats…knowing the numbers, and I think a really respectable thing is when [politicians] have face-to-face conversations with people who have been affected … whether that be good or bad,” Lampshire said.
The Texas Senate election will take place on Nov. 3. Students can learn more about how to register to vote in Texas from the Office of Governmental Relations.
