UVA scholarship recipient shares planned 'antifascist' flag-burning tailgate protesting Trump
A University of Virginia (UVA) law student and scholarship awardee organized a 'flag-burning tailgate' to protest President Trump’s new executive order penalizing flag desecration.
UVA said the group behind the event is not officially recognized and that officials are reviewing the post’s legitimacy.
Kirk Woolf, a scholarship awardee and law student at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville (UVA) circulated a flyer advertising an “Antifascist Tailgate” which he said was organized by the Friends Against Fascism Organization to promote flag burning in protest of President Trump’s new executive order on flag desecration.
A flyer advertising the “Antifascist Tailgate” showed an American flag on a grill and promised “hot dogs and burning flags” and was shared in an X post by GOP Strategist Greg Price as reported by Fox News.
University of Virginia law students are apparently holding an Antifa tailgate tomorrow where they plan to burn American flags. pic.twitter.com/jaDhu2014y
— Greg Price (@greg_price11) October 2, 2025
It remains unclear whether the event actually ended up taking place, which was planned for Oct. 3 according to the group chat message.
Kirk Wolff, a UVA law student and Navy veteran, circulated the flyer in a law school group chat. In a screenshot of the message obtained by Fox News Digital, Woolf can be seen to explain that the planned tailgate is in direct response to Trump’s executive order to prosecute the burning of the American Flag. He also sent the chat a link to the order directly.
“The president does not get to say what the law is; that is solely the province of the judiciary,” Wolff told Fox News, saying that Trump attempted to “intimidate dissenters and chill speech.”
Wolff has recently been honored as a recipient of the Pat Tillman scholarship. The Tillman Scholar Program, founded in 2009, supports military service members, veterans, and their spouses who demonstrate exceptional leadership and a commitment to public service.
Scholars receive academic funding, access to professional mentorship, and membership in a national network devoted to leadership and community impact.
UVA responded by stressing that no formal approval had been granted.
“‘Friends Against Fascism’ is not an official student organization at UVA or the UVA School of Law, and we have not received any request nor granted approval for an event of this nature,” a school spokesperson said. “University officials are looking into the post to determine its legitimacy.”
On Aug. 25, President Trump signed an executive order that directs the Justice Department and other agencies to pursue stronger penalties against those who desecrate the American flag.
The order declares the flag “the most sacred and cherished symbol” of the nation and argues that burning it is “a statement of contempt, hostility, and violence against our Nation.” The order also calls for immigration consequences for foreign nationals involved in flag desecration.
Campus Reform has previously reported about instances of anti-American rhetoric on college campuses. For instance, the University of Washington is offering a graduate political science seminar describing the U.S. as a “racial state” and linking Trump support to white supremacy.
Taught by Professor Sophia Jordán Wallace, the course assigns texts on race, gender, and politics and requires students to defend the readings.
To counteract such sentiment, the U.S. Department of Education last week announced the introduction of $153 million in grants to expand civics and American history education through the American History and Civics Seminars Program.
The funding will support universities, nonprofits, and K–12 districts with seminars, curricula, and classroom resources tied to America’s founding values.
“These grants reflect the Trump Administration’s ongoing efforts to educate and inspire youth toward informed and patriotic citizenship,” Under Secretary Nicholas Kent said about the funding.
Campus Reform has contacted the University of Virginia School of Law for comment. This article will be updated accordingly.
