Charlie Kirk's UW campus visit

UW students prepare for speaker Charlie Kirk

An appearance by right-wing host Charlie Kirk is still going on as scheduled at the University of Washington, despite calls from students to cancel his event.

SEATTLE - An appearance by right-wing host Charlie Kirk is still going on as scheduled at the University of Washington, despite calls from students to cancel his event.

Kirk will be speaking at UW's HUB at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday as part of his Live Free Tour.

Kirk's visit is happening near the Pro-Palestine encampment at UW's Quad which is now entering its second week on campus.

Mathieu Chabaud, a member of UW's Progressive Student Union, who has been staying at the encampment, is among the students concerned with Kirk coming to UW.

"Charlie Kirk has been instrumental in leading the fight against LGBTQ+ rights on campuses and on leading the fight against diversity in schools," said Chabaud.

Kirk is the founder and president of Turning Point USA, a non-profit organization that advocates for conservative politics at schools across the country.

Aristeo Ayala, a 4th year construction management UW student is excited about Kirk's talk at the HUB.

"I'm actually going to go," said Ayala. "I'm actually a big fan of him."

In a statement from UW:

"Charlie Kirk was invited to speak by one of the UW's Registered Student Organizations, which are free to extend invitations to guest speakers. Our priority is the safety and security of our campus community. We recognize that tensions are especially high due to events around the world, and our hope is that people with opposing views refrain from seeking confrontations and avoid antagonizing one another. We do not detail or share security plans in advance of events, but are taking appropriate advance measures."

Andrew Kolvet, a spokesperson for Turning Point USA told FOX 13 over the phone that Kirk's visit was planned long before UW's Pro-Palestine encampment started.

Kolvet said he knows of students that are looking forward to Kirk's tour.

When asked if Kirk plans to visit the Quad where the Pro-Palestine encampment is, Kolvet says Kirk does want to visit the encampment and that is to be determined.

"If his supporters want to come out here and try to interfere with us we're going to say we're out here for Palestine at the end of the day, we quite frankly do not care about your presence here," said Chabaud.

The University of Washington's Muslim Student Association made an announcement late Monday night on Instagram, calling for community support from 2 p.m. to nightfall on Tuesday ahead of Kirk's visit: