Hey Occupy, if America is so terrible why do people risk dying to get here?

by Sara Johnson

While Occupy marches through the streets of Chicago protesting “corporate greed” (yet demanding they be given things they haven’t earned), “police brutality” (while breaking store windows and plotting acts of terrorism), and countless other ridiculously backward complaints, one man joined a large number of brave men and women who have risked their lives to experience the freedom we have been blessed with in America.

Over the weekend the blind Chinese activist, Chen Guangcheng, who escaped house arrest and risked his life to get to the U.S. embassy in China, finally made it to America. The 40-year-old activist, known as a leader in the civil rights struggle in China, is symbolic of a new breed of activists that the Communist Party finds threatening. Why? They appeal to the average citizen, making them effective in empowering others to join them. Chen was well known for fighting for disabled farmers’ rights and fighting against forced abortions in his community, and because of this, he and his family had been living under house arrest for about seven years.

Bob Fu, founder and president of the U.S.-based human rights group China Aid, played a key role in publicizing Chen’s escape and updating the events that took place leading up to his transport to the U.S.  Fu, who also escaped persecution from China, was instrumental in keeping pressure on our leaders here at home; getting Chen two opportunities to speak to Congress live from China. Fu’s PR success with this story helped make the average American aware of the dire situation Chen was in after making it to the U.S. Embassy adding pressure to our government leaders. The story was all over the news, and you would have been hard pressed to find an American who didn’t think we should protect Chen and get him to America.

Despite the public support, most American-born citizens don’t know what it is like to have a real fear of their own government, my generation in particular – the “20-somethings.” The average American under the age of thirty has barely been taught enough about the countries where citizens have or do live under oppression to really comprehend how blessed they are to live here. As Glenn has revealed on his program many times, there are many college professors that are teaching their students that America isn’t great and our government is oppressive. Any proof needed of that can be easily found in the “Occupy” movement.

As the “I want” generation demands free education, housing, and refer to a guaranteed job as a human right, Chinese citizens, like Chen, are fighting the right of life or the life of their second child. While young, single women around the country are complaining about their college making them pay tens of dollars a month for birth control, women in the Sharia governed countries would be stoned for needing it. Young people listen to music and watch TV shows and movies every day that talk about women like they are a commodity, well in countries like China, they are. The female infanticide rate is through the roof because of the one child policy. So, while women within our borders claim abortion is a matter of “women’s health and women’s rights,” citizens of China are fighting for the right to life, or at least to choose.

When in the last time you saw people fleeing the “oppression” of America to go to China? Never, yet that is exactly what many of the Occupy protesters are fighting for. They want guaranteed housing, healthcare, education, jobs, clothes – you name it, they want it, and it’s Uncle Sam’s job to provide it for them. Well Occupy, all of that can be found in communist China, along with forced abortions, death rooms for babies, more executions than any other country in the world, religious persecution, etc.

Chen arrived at NYU on Saturday and recounted how he made his way to America, and thanked those who helped him. He also shared some stories how he and his family were persecuted, and the fear he has that his extended family will be punished. Have you ever had to worry about the government physically hurting or imprisoning your extended family because of something you did? Of course not, but that doesn’t keep members of my generation from marching through the streets shouting “F*** the police, throwing things at officers and claiming police brutality.

Chen is expected to attend law school at NYU, a dream of his, and if NYU wasn’t too busy offering class credit to join the Occupy movement that’s pushing to overthrow the U.S. government for a system like the one Chen fled, they might take this opportunity to highlight what people are willing to risk to get to America. And, how unique our country is for allowing refugees, like Chen, to come to here and pursue their dreams.

We are all guilty of taking the blessings of America for granted from time to time, and our country isn’t perfect by any stretch of the imagination, but it is exceptional. If we opened our borders and stripped away the immigration laws, do you think there would be a huge influx of people into our country or out of it? What country do people run to when they are being persecuted in their own country? Who do they ask for help from? There is one reason for that, and our current President refers to it as a “negative charter of liberties.”

Every American could probably learn a thing or two from Chen Guangcheng about how blessed we are to live where we do, but younger especially the younger generations. Every time you see a mother with two kids, a female or disabled child, even a (peaceful) protester, thank God you live in America.

Are Gen Z's socialist sympathies a threat to America's future?

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In a republic forged on the anvil of liberty and self-reliance, where generations have fought to preserve free markets against the siren song of tyranny, Gen Z's alarming embrace of socialism amid housing crises and economic despair has sparked urgent alarm. But in a recent poll, Glenn asked the tough questions: Where do Gen Z's socialist sympathies come from—and what does it mean for America's future? Glenn asked, and you answered—hundreds weighed in on this volatile mix of youthful frustration and ideological peril.

The results paint a stark picture of distrust in the system. A whopping 79% of you affirm that Gen Z's socialist sympathies stem from real economic gripes, like sky-high housing costs and a rigged game tilted toward the elite and corporations—defying the argument that it's just youthful naivety. Even more telling, 97% believe this trend arises from a glaring educational void on socialism's bloody historical track record, where failed regimes have crushed freedoms under the boot of big government. And 97% see these poll findings as a harbinger of deepening generational rifts, potentially fueling political chaos and authoritarian overreach if left unchecked.

Your verdict underscores a moral imperative: America's soul hangs on reclaiming timeless values like self-reliance and liberty. This feedback amplifies your concerns, sending a clear message to the powers that be.

Want to make your voice heard? Check out more polls HERE.

Civics isn’t optional—America's survival depends on it

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Every vote, jury duty, and act of engagement is civics in action, not theory. The republic survives only when citizens embrace responsibility.

I slept through high school civics class. I memorized the three branches of government, promptly forgot them, and never thought of that word again. Civics seemed abstract, disconnected from real life. And yet, it is critical to maintaining our republic.

Civics is not a class. It is a responsibility. A set of habits, disciplines, and values that make a country possible. Without it, no country survives.

We assume America will survive automatically, but every generation must learn to carry the weight of freedom.

Civics happens every time you speak freely, worship openly, question your government, serve on a jury, or cast a ballot. It’s not a theory or just another entry in a textbook. It’s action — the acts we perform every day to be a positive force in society.

Many of us recoil at “civic responsibility.” “I pay my taxes. I follow the law. I do my civic duty.” That’s not civics. That’s a scam, in my opinion.

Taking up the torch

The founders knew a republic could never run on autopilot. And yet, that’s exactly what we do now. We assume it will work, then complain when it doesn’t. Meanwhile, the people steering the country are driving it straight into a mountain — and they know it.

Our founders gave us tools: separation of powers, checks and balances, federalism, elections. But they also warned us: It won’t work unless we are educated, engaged, and moral.

Are we educated, engaged, and moral? Most Americans cannot even define a republic, never mind “keep one,” as Benjamin Franklin urged us to do after the Constitutional Convention.

We fought and died for the republic. Gaining it was the easy part. Keeping it is hard. And keeping it is done through civics.

Start small and local

In our homes, civics means teaching our children the Constitution, our history, and that liberty is not license — it is the space to do what is right. In our communities, civics means volunteering, showing up, knowing your sheriff, attending school board meetings, and understanding the laws you live under. When necessary, it means challenging them.

How involved are you in your local community? Most people would admit: not really.

Civics is learned in practice. And it starts small. Be honest in your business dealings. Speak respectfully in disagreement. Vote in every election, not just the presidential ones. Model citizenship for your children. Liberty is passed down by teaching and example.

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We assume America will survive automatically, but every generation must learn to carry the weight of freedom.

Start with yourself. Study the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and state laws. Study, act, serve, question, and teach. Only then can we hope to save the republic. The next election will not fix us. The nation will rise or fall based on how each of us lives civics every day.

Civics isn’t a class. It’s the way we protect freedom, empower our communities, and pass down liberty to the next generation.

This article originally appeared on TheBlaze.com.

'Rage against the dying of the light': Charlie Kirk lived that mandate

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Kirk’s tragic death challenges us to rise above fear and anger, to rebuild bridges where others build walls, and to fight for the America he believed in.

I’ve only felt this weight once before. It was 2001, just as my radio show was about to begin. The World Trade Center fell, and I was called to speak immediately. I spent the day and night by my bedside, praying for words that could meet the moment.

Yesterday, I found myself in the same position. September 11, 2025. The assassination of Charlie Kirk. A friend. A warrior for truth.

Out of this tragedy, the tyrant dies, but the martyr’s influence begins.

Moments like this make words feel inadequate. Yet sometimes, words from another time speak directly to our own. In 1947, Dylan Thomas, watching his father slip toward death, penned lines that now resonate far beyond his own grief:

Do not go gentle into that good night. / Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

Thomas was pleading for his father to resist the impending darkness of death. But those words have become a mandate for all of us: Do not surrender. Do not bow to shadows. Even when the battle feels unwinnable.

Charlie Kirk lived that mandate. He knew the cost of speaking unpopular truths. He knew the fury of those who sought to silence him. And yet he pressed on. In his life, he embodied a defiance rooted not in anger, but in principle.

Picking up his torch

Washington, Jefferson, Adams — our history was started by men who raged against an empire, knowing the gallows might await. Lincoln raged against slavery. Martin Luther King Jr. raged against segregation. Every generation faces a call to resist surrender.

It is our turn. Charlie’s violent death feels like a knockout punch. Yet if his life meant anything, it means this: Silence in the face of darkness is not an option.

He did not go gently. He spoke. He challenged. He stood. And now, the mantle falls to us. To me. To you. To every American.

We cannot drift into the shadows. We cannot sit quietly while freedom fades. This is our moment to rage — not with hatred, not with vengeance, but with courage. Rage against lies, against apathy, against the despair that tells us to do nothing. Because there is always something you can do.

Even small acts — defiance, faith, kindness — are light in the darkness. Reaching out to those who mourn. Speaking truth in a world drowning in deceit. These are the flames that hold back the night. Charlie carried that torch. He laid it down yesterday. It is ours to pick up.

The light may dim, but it always does before dawn. Commit today: I will not sleep as freedom fades. I will not retreat as darkness encroaches. I will not be silent as evil forces claim dominion. I have no king but Christ. And I know whom I serve, as did Charlie.

Two turning points, decades apart

On Wednesday, the world changed again. Two tragedies, separated by decades, bound by the same question: Who are we? Is this worth saving? What kind of people will we choose to be?

Imagine a world where more of us choose to be peacemakers. Not passive, not silent, but builders of bridges where others erect walls. Respect and listening transform even the bitterest of foes. Charlie Kirk embodied this principle.

He did not strike the weak; he challenged the powerful. He reached across divides of politics, culture, and faith. He changed hearts. He sparked healing. And healing is what our nation needs.

At the center of all this is one truth: Every person is a child of God, deserving of dignity. Change will not happen in Washington or on social media. It begins at home, where loneliness and isolation threaten our souls. Family is the antidote. Imperfect, yes — but still the strongest source of stability and meaning.

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Forgiveness, fidelity, faithfulness, and honor are not dusty words. They are the foundation of civilization. Strong families produce strong citizens. And today, Charlie’s family mourns. They must become our family too. We must stand as guardians of his legacy, shining examples of the courage he lived by.

A time for courage

I knew Charlie. I know how he would want us to respond: Multiply his courage. Out of this tragedy, the tyrant dies, but the martyr’s influence begins. Out of darkness, great and glorious things will sprout — but we must be worthy of them.

Charlie Kirk lived defiantly. He stood in truth. He changed the world. And now, his torch is in our hands. Rage, not in violence, but in unwavering pursuit of truth and goodness. Rage against the dying of the light.

This article originally appeared on TheBlaze.com.

Glenn Beck is once again calling on his loyal listeners and viewers to come together and channel the same unity and purpose that defined the historic 9-12 Project. That movement, born in the wake of national challenges, brought millions together to revive core values of faith, hope, and charity.

Glenn created the original 9-12 Project in early 2009 to bring Americans back to where they were in the wake of the 9/11 attacks. In those moments, we weren't Democrats and Republicans, conservative or liberal, Red States or Blue States, we were united as one, as America. The original 9-12 Project aimed to root America back in the founding principles of this country that united us during those darkest of days.

This new initiative draws directly from that legacy, focusing on supporting the family of Charlie Kirk in these dark days following his tragic murder.

The revival of the 9-12 Project aims to secure the long-term well-being of Charlie Kirk's wife and children. All donations will go straight to meeting their immediate and future needs. If the family deems the funds surplus to their requirements, Charlie's wife has the option to redirect them toward the vital work of Turning Point USA.

This campaign is more than just financial support—it's a profound gesture of appreciation for Kirk's tireless dedication to the cause of liberty. It embodies the unbreakable bond of our community, proving that when we stand united, we can make a real difference.
Glenn Beck invites you to join this effort. Show your solidarity by donating today and honoring Charlie Kirk and his family in this meaningful way.

You can learn more about the 9-12 Project and donate HERE