Gage Skidmore via Wikimedia Commons

The Yale College Republicans virtually hosted Erik Prince — the founder of the controversial military contractor Blackwater, which is now called Constellis — in Linsly-Chittenden Hall Wednesday night.

The event, part of the organization’s speaker series, drew a small crowd of about ten. Prince was supposed to speak in person, but his work schedule prevented his in-person attendance at the event, he said. 

After a short stint as a Navy SEAL, Prince rose to global prominence as the founder of Blackwater, a private military corporation that earned billions by providing services to the U.S. government. The company found itself embroiled in controversy following the 2007 Nisour Square Massacre, when Blackwater troops ambushed Iraqi civilians, ultimately leaving seventeen dead and twenty-four injured. Shortly after, Blackwater was sold to a private investment group, and Prince resigned. 

Blackwater’s controversial history did not escape Prince or the event’s organizers. During his speech, Prince alluded to the “tragedies” of the Iraq War that led to his company’s demise, and Yale Republicans President Manu Anpalagan ’26 acknowledged Prince’s “controversial past” but emphasized the “importance of having a diverse set of viewpoints” on campus.

At the Wednesday evening event, Prince discussed ongoing geopolitical conflicts and the role of private military firms — and privatization overall — in government. 

Events director Shailen Sharma ’27 introduced Prince as “a patriot who cares deeply about this country and who has done a lot for this country, for veterans.” 

Prince articulated what he called a pro-business and “America-First” philosophy that emphasized the privatization of the defense sector. He spoke against government inefficiency and foreign aid, saying that the “shuttering of USAID was an excellent thing”  and that “little of it got to where it should be.” 

He contrasted what he viewed as government failures with the power of the private sector. 

“The business of America should be business. Capitalism was what made America a prosperous society, not government,” Prince said. 

Prince argued that the privatization of government services would increase efficiency, speed and innovation. Per him, “governments are always going to be slower and dumber” than their private sector counterparts. 

Beyond advocating for broad systemic change, Prince also spoke of his current, hands-on work in volatile geopolitical areas. He highlighted his efforts in Haiti, where he said his team was asked by the Haitian government to “push back on gangs.”

Although discussion primarily focused on ongoing geopolitical conflicts, the former Blackwater CEO provided the sparsely-filled classroom with advice, cautioning that “there’s a lot of evil in the world and to deny that is delusion.” 

Prince concluded the talk by taking questions from the audience. The questions focused on the future of undersea cables, America’s great power competition in its relation to the private military and the Navy’s new posture towards private military firms. Throughout all his answers, Prince maintained his argument for the privatization of government tasks.

The event was part of the Yale College Republican’s speaker series. Revitalized in 2024, the new chapter has sought to offer a conservative space for “America-First conservatism on campus” that “proudly and openly supports President Trump and the MAGA movement,” as Anpalagan said in an interview with the News, adding that campus previously lacked such a space. 

According to Anpalagan, the speaker list for next semester includes Republican Rep. Elise Stefanik of New York, former Trump advisor May Mailman and Prince — who will return to speak in person.