In Remembrance of Charlie Kirk: A Call to End the Cycle of Violence

September 14, 2025

By: Phil Schwarz

The tragedy that unfolded on September 10, 2025, at Utah Valley University in Orem, Utah, defies comprehension—a single, deliberate gunshot to the neck, fired from a rooftop, claiming the life of Charlie Kirk, the 31-year-old founder and CEO of Turning Point USA, as he engaged with students during the launch of his "American Comeback Tour." In that moment, under a sunlit tent amid 3,000 attendees, a voice of unyielding conviction was silenced, leaving a nation to grapple with the profound loss of a man who dedicated his life to fostering dialogue, critical thinking, and the defense of constitutional freedoms. Charlie's death is not merely a personal bereavement; it is a stark indictment of the escalating political violence that threatens the fabric of our democracy, demanding our collective resolve to reclaim civility and unity.

Born on October 14, 1993, in Arlington Heights, Illinois, and raised in Prospect Heights, Charlie was instilled with enduring family values and a profound sense of patience by his devoted parents—qualities that defined his character and approach to public discourse. At just 18, he co-founded Turning Point USA, transforming it into a powerhouse that empowered millions of young conservatives to engage thoughtfully on college campuses nationwide. He entered these arenas—often hostile territory—unarmed save for the Bible, the Constitution, and an intellect honed to precision, delivering facts without notes and dissecting opposing views with respectful rigor. Charlie prayed before each event, seeking divine guidance not for triumph, but for words that might illuminate shared truths and inspire change. His style was neither bombastic nor unyielding; he listened intently, conceded errors with grace, and emphasized common ground, often remarking, "We have more in common than not." Through this, he prompted countless students—across ideological lines—to reconsider entrenched beliefs, fostering a generation equipped for informed, principled decision-making.

Beyond the stage, Charlie was a pillar of quiet strength: a loving husband to Erika and a tender father to their two young children, whose futures now bear the indelible shadow of this loss. As chaos erupted—screams echoing, his daughter fleeing toward him in terror—their world shattered irrevocably. The perpetrator, 22-year-old Tyler Robinson, a Utah resident radicalized by political animus, was apprehended on September 12 after confessing to a family friend and being traced via surveillance footage of his Dodge Challenger near the campus. Authorities recovered a bolt-action rifle, and Utah Governor Spencer Cox unequivocally deemed it a "political assassination," underscoring the targeted malice behind the act. President Trump ordered flags lowered to half-staff until September 14, a gesture echoed in bipartisan condemnations from figures including Barack Obama, Kamala Harris, and Benjamin Netanyahu, who mourned Kirk as a "lion-hearted friend of Israel" and a defender of Judeo-Christian values. Yet, amid this unity, disturbing undercurrents of glee from extremists on both sides reveal a deeper societal fracture, one that glorifies violence over vigorous debate.

This outrage compounds the relentless tide of violence plaguing our nation, each incident a searing reminder of our shared vulnerability. Consider the June 14, 2025, assassinations of Minnesota House Speaker Emerita Melissa Hortman and her husband Mark in their Brooklyn Park home, carried out by Vance Boelter, a 57-year-old impersonating law enforcement in a targeted attack over perceived political betrayals on immigration. Or the May 21, 2025, execution-style killings of Israeli Embassy staffers Yaron Lischinsky and Sarah Milgrim outside Washington's Capital Jewish Museum, gunned down by Elias Rodriguez in an antisemitic act of terror as they left an event, their engagement just days away. The April 13, 2025, arson at Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro's Harrisburg residence, where Cody Balmer hurled Molotov cocktails while the family slept, driven by rage over U.S. policy on Palestine. The December 4, 2024, cold-blooded murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson outside a Manhattan hotel, shot in the back by a masked assailant amid public fury over healthcare denials. The August 22, 2025, unprovoked stabbing of Ukrainian refugee Iryna Zarutska on Charlotte's light rail, slain by repeat offender Decarlos Brown in a random act of brutality. And just yesterday, September 11, 2025, the Evergreen High School shooting in Colorado, where a radicalized student wounded two classmates before taking his own life, echoing the ghosts of Columbine in the same district. These are not isolated horrors; they form a grim mosaic of ideological fury, mental instability, and unchecked access to violence, eroding the sanctity of public spaces—from classrooms to capitols

Charlie Kirk embodied the antidote to this darkness. He championed the Constitution's enduring principles with fearless clarity, rooted in a faith that guided him toward humility and hope. He could have bridged our divides in unprecedented ways, uniting us not through coercion, but through the power of reasoned exchange. As Robert F. Kennedy Jr. poignantly observed, "Once again, a bullet has silenced the most eloquent truth-teller of an era." Yet his legacy endures: Turning Point USA presses forward, declaring him "America's greatest martyr for free speech"; vigils illuminate campuses from Phoenix to Orem; his teachings inspire a surge of young voices committed to critical inquiry.

We stand at a crossroads, compelled to honor Charlie by rejecting the very violence he abhorred. "Violence is never the answer," he often declared, "it is the problem." Let us heed this truth: convene in good faith, debate with respect, and safeguard our freedoms with unwavering vigilance. For Erika and their children, for the innocents lost in this onslaught, for the republic Charlie loved so fiercely—let us rise as one, channeling our grief into a renewed commitment to dialogue and justice. In his memory, may we build the united America he envisioned, where words, not weapons, forge our path forward.