Charlie Kirk’s death has shocked the nation in more ways than one. The statements following his death have flooded the internet and created a divide of sympathy.
Charlie Kirk got his start in politics after dropping out of college and catching the eye of former businessman Bill Montgomery. From there, they went on to form Turning Point USA (TPUSA) on June 5, 2012.
Turning Point USA is a nonprofit organization dedicated to “Identifying, educating, training, and organizing students to promote freedom.” Following the launch of Turning Point, Charlie Kirk became involved with President Trump during his first run.
According to an article written for CNN, “How Charlie Kirk came to earn Trump’s admiration”, Kirk was more than a loyal fan of Trump, as he made frequent visits to the White House and voiced his stance on certain political issues in the world.
Charlie Kirk is known for his controversial political stance on issues such as race, gun control, gender identity, free speech, and climate change. Kirk once stated in an interview with Heather Mac Donald for his podcast “The Charlie Kirk Show.”
“If I’m dealing with somebody in customer service who’s a moronic Black woman, I wonder is she there because of her excellence, or is she there because of affirmative action?”
Sophomore Jaylen Bowman shares his beliefs on how the statements made by Charlie Kirk have impacted responses surrounding his death. “I believe that the statement was obviously blatantly racist and arguably sexist too…because people who are racist aren’t good people and sexism is also a very bad thing, which also made people celebrate.”
Junior Varsity Cheerleader Kayden Wright also gives her thoughts on how she believes Kirk’s death will affect gun violence. “I don’t believe his death will change gun violence because his stance was literally about how people use guns and give up certain rights to have a gun.”
This isn’t the only instance of Charlie Kirk going viral over his controversial statements. During a 2023 event for a division of Turning Point USA, TPUSA Faith, Charlie stated that he believed it was worth it to have “Unfortunately, some gun deaths every single year so that we can have the Second Amendment to protect our other God-Given rights.”
Some statements like these have caused people across social media platforms to have negative opinions of him. Some of which have gotten people fired or suspended from their jobs.
According to the New York Times, talk show host Jimmy Kimmel has had his late-night show pulled “indefinitely” after facing backlash from comments he made on his show regarding the motives of the man who was charged in the assassination of Charlie Kirk.
On the Monday night program of Jimmy Kimmel’s show, he stated that the right is trying to characterize Kirk’s killer as anyone but the right.
“The MAGA Gang (is) desperately trying to characterize this kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them and doing everything they can to score political points from it…”
Jimmy Kimmel isn’t the only person taking a hit from the statements made. HBCUs such as Virginia State University, Alabama State University, Southern University, and more have been the target of threats from the belief that it was a Black person who killed Charlie Kirk.
According to the Guardian, Alabama State University’s President, Quinton T Ross Jr., stated his school received “A terroristic threat directed at our campus.”
National English Honors Society member Lauren McGraw shares her thoughts on the belief that it was a Black person who killed Kirk. “I have seen that many Republican content creators immediately migrated to the thought of a black person being at fault for Charlie Kirk’s death.”
As conversations surrounding Kirk’s death grow, it forces the country to look within and acknowledge its own shortcomings. One of the things that makes this country what it is is its free speech, but when free speech is taken away, it raises questions as to how free voices really are.
