Why is it that the death of Charlie Kirk hit me as hard as it did? Political violence has been so frequent in the headlines, you would think I would have built up a tolerance by now.
Over the past few years, there has been an uptick in cases of political violence. On Jan. 6, 2021, a mob stormed the US capital to disrupt the certification of the 2020 election. On Oct. 28, 2022, an intruder broke into Nancy Pelosi’s home and attacked husband Paul with a hammer. On July 13 and Sept. 15, 2024, Trump was almost assassinated. On Dec. 4, 2024, in Midtown Manhattan, United Health Care CEO Brian Thompson was assassinated on the street. April 13, 2025, Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro’s house was set on fire while he and his family slept inside. And just this summer, on June 14, 2025, Minnesota legislators were attacked at their homes: Democratic former State House Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband were both killed, and State Senator John Hoffman and his wife were wounded. The killer had a longer list of political targets. These are just some of the acts of political violence committed over only the past five years.
Acts of political violence, are increasingly becoming more accepted by the public, particularly among young Americans. FIRE, a non partisan free-speech organization, surveyed 68,000 students and found that from 2022 to 2025 alone, students are more likely to accept disruptive tactics to prevent campus speech. Citizen data, a bipartisan research organization, found that while 90% of Gen X and Boomers think violence against elected officials is never acceptable, only 44% of Gen Z and 67% of Millennials agree.
Political violence has quite clearly been on the rise. Not just the amount of incidents, but also a rise of public acceptance. Nevertheless, on Wednesday when I walked out of practice and saw my mom had texted me that Charlie Kirk had been shot dead, my stomach dropped.
Let’s go back to 2012, when an 18-year-old Charlie Kirk decided to forgo college and founded Turning Point USA to spread conservative values to American youth on college campuses. In those early years, Kirk traveled frequently to college campuses, working to establish a network of student chapters and expand the organization’s presence nationwide. Over the following decade, he oversaw the group’s growth into a prominent national organization. In May 2021, Kirk married businesswoman and former Miss Arizona USA Erika Frantzve. The couple had two children, a daughter born in August 2022 and a son born in May 2024. Kirk was an evangelical Christian, and his faith was a consistent element of his public and private life. Alongside his work with Turning Point USA, he authored books, hosted a podcast, and became a frequent speaker at events across the country. His career combined organizational leadership with media engagement, while his personal life centered on his wife, children, and religious community.
In the Daily Wire’s live broadcast in the aftermath of the shooting, prominent conservative podcaster Ben Shapiro recalls watching an 18-year-old Charlie Kirk asking people for money at a fundraising event, and saying that kid would be the head of the RNC one day. He didn’t get there, but arguably he had more impact for the Republican Party with Turning Point. Not only was he incredibly effective at reaching younger voters, his organization basically ran the get-out-the-vote campaign for the Republican party, and he is extremely close to the president.
At the young age of 31, one could guess what this man would have brought to American politics next, but no one probably would have guessed that Charlie Kirk was out of time. On Sept. 10, Kirk spoke at Utah Valley University at an outdoor event under the banner “Prove Me Wrong.” It was the first stop of his “American Comeback Tour.” He was onstage, answering a question from a student about mass shootings in the U.S., when he was struck by a single bullet in the neck. His family was present, watching from a location not far from where he spoke. After the shot, people in the crowd panicked. Security and event staff carried him to a nearby hospital, where he was pronounced dead. Authorities believe the shot came from a building rooftop, about 200 yards away. They recovered the weapon used: a high-powered bolt-action rifle. It was found in a nearby wooded area, wrapped in a towel. On the bullets and shell casings, messages were found with references or memes from internet culture. One saying “Hey fascist! catch!” The suspect is now in custody. He was turned in by family members after a brief manhunt. Legal proceedings are pending, and authorities are still investigating motive, details of planning, and ideology.
Kirk leaves behind his wife, Erika, and his two children. In her live address to the public broadcasted from TPUSA Erika recalled her daughter asking, “Where’s Daddy?” and, unsure what to even tell a three year old, responding, “Baby, Daddy loves you so much. Don’t you worry. He’s on a work trip with Jesus, so he can afford your blueberry budget.”
Conservatives across the country mourn Kirk’s death. Kirk had many friends, and personal relationships with all sorts of conservative leaders and speakers. Chief among these relationships was President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance. Trump wrote on Truth Social: “The Great, and even Legendary, Charlie Kirk, is dead. No one understood or had the Heart of the Youth in the United States of America better than Charlie. He was loved and admired by ALL, especially me, and now, he is no longer with us. Melania and my Sympathies go out to his beautiful wife Erika, and family. Charlie, we love you!” Charlie Kirk’s body returned home to Arizona from Utah on Air Force Two, the vice-presidential plane. JD Vance, who described Kirk as a “true friend,” helped carry his casket with a group of soldiers.
It was not just Kirk’s allies who were affected. Dean Withers, a 21-year-old left-wing activist, known as a prominent debate “rival” of Kirk was live on social media when he found out about the assanation. Standing in opposition to everything Kirk advocated, having ruthlessly debated Kirk head to head countless times, Dean was still brought to tears. Dean said as he fell apart on the stream, “Nobody, nobody deserves that.” Bernie Sanders released a statement in response to the murder and rising political violence in America. He forcefully condemned the murder, saying, “Political violence in fact is political cowardice. It means you cannot convince people of the correctness of your ideas, and you have to impose them through force.”
Still, there are some who try to explain, sympathize with, or partially excuse Kirk’s murder. MSNBC’s Matthew Dowd seemingly blamed Kirk for his own death saying: “And I always go back to, hateful thoughts lead to hateful words, which then lead to hateful actions. And I think that is the environment we are in. You can’t stop with these sort of awful thoughts you have and then saying these awful words and not expect awful actions to take place.” The left-leaning network quickly condemned his statement, with the MSNBC president calling his words “inappropriate, insensitive, and unacceptable.” Dowd, who has since apologized, was fired.
This death has forced all of us to pause, regardless of politics. Political violence may fade in and out of the headlines, but the outrage in response to this tragedy shows that we still recognize its importance. America is not yet numb, and the tide can still turn toward rejecting violence and protecting free speech. If you take anything from this, let it be this: outrage must remain our instinct whenever political violence occurs. Charlie Kirk, like any one of us, was more than his politics. He was a husband, a father, a son, a friend. His words were not violence; violence is violence. His wife did not deserve to lose her partner. His children did not deserve to lose their father. And America does not deserve to lose its commitment to free speech. The strength of our nation has always rested not in silencing those we oppose, but in proving them wrong through debate, persuasion, and the ballot box.
