The assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk in Utah on Wednesday sent shockwaves through the U.S.
It sparked grief among his supporters, outrage in Congress, and mocking celebrations from some left-wing voices online.
Kirk, a conservative influencer and founder of Turning Point USA, was shot in the neck during a student Q&A event at Utah Valley University in Orem.
Highlights
- Conservative activist Charlie Kirk was assassinated at Utah Valley University during a Q&A event, dying two-and-a-half hours later in hospital.
- Some left-wing social media users mockingly celebrated Kirk's death, calling him a 'Nazi' and saying he 'deserved' to be shot.
- At the Capitol, Republicans held a moment of silence for Kirk, while Democrats objected and demanded action on gun control.
- FBI and Utah authorities continue to investigate; the shooter remains at large after initial detentions and releases.
Some left-wing social media users mockingly celebrated Charlie Kirk’s murder
Image credits: Trent Nelson/Getty Images
He died about two-and-a-half hours later at a local hospital. The shooter remains at large as the FBI and Utah police continue their investigation.
News of Kirk’s death quickly reached Capitol Hill, where Speaker Mike Johnson led a moment of silence on the House floor.
Johnson described Kirk as a “close friend” and a “confidant.” He called the assassination “devastating” and urged leaders on all sides to reject political violence.
“We need every political leader to decry the violence and to do it loudly. The problem is in the human heart, and it’s gotten out of hand,” Johnson told reporters before the moment of silence.
Following the moment of silence, Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.) requested a prayer for Kirk, 31, who was in critical condition at the time, and his family.
Democrats loudly objected, demanding action on gun control, and noted that the House had ignored a school shooting that had happened earlier in the day, which left three students injured and in critical condition, including the shooter.
Kirk, 31, was shot in the neck during an event in Utah
Rep. Anna Paulina Luna of Florida, a former conservative influencer, responded, accusing Democrats of fueling rhetoric that led to Kirk’s death.
“You all caused this,” she told the Democrats, as Johnson kept calling for order.
Later, when speaking with reporters, Luna doubled down on her views. She said the Democrats “most certainly” caused this.
“How many times have they called us fascists, Nazis, or war criminals? How often have they claimed the American people will lose their rights, or smeared us as authoritarian dictators? How often have they attacked Charlie Kirk and others like him? And tonight, when asked simply to pray for a grieving family, they booed. That behavior is disgusting,” Luna wrote later on X.
As lawmakers fought inside the Capitol, left-wing users on social media celebrated Kirk’s death.
One Blusky user responded to the comments from the House, saying, “Charlie Kirk wasn't killed by political violence. Charlie Kirk was killed by *gun* violence.”
Some compared him to Adolf Hitler, while others called him a “Nazi” and said he “deserved” to be shot.
On TikTok, videos showed users fake-crying while joking about the assassination.
One post read, “Why didn’t Charlie Kirk just debate the bullet? He would have easily deflected.”
Social media users called the conservative influencer a ‘Nazi,’ saying he ‘deserved’ to be shot
Image credits: Andrew Harnik/Getty Images
Another wrote, “If he doesn’t make it at least he died with the love of his life, school shootings.”
In an X post, three men could be seen saying they support Charlie Kirk’s shooter, with one man saying, “I would kill him myself.”
Older videos of Kirk defending incidents of gun violence as “worth it,” for preserving the Second Amendment rights in the U.S., went viral on social media.
On Bluesky, one user wrote: “RIP Charlie Kirk, you would have loved politicizing the shooting of Charlie Kirk.”
Another added, “Charlie Kirk won’t see your jokes about him getting shot but people who lost family or friends to gun violence might, and as one of those people I say keep posting those bangers. F*** Charlie Kirk.”
Others framed the backlash as hypocrisy. “And now we sit back and watch Republicans ignore the school shooting today while loudly mourning Charlie Kirk,” a user wrote.
Conservatives accused the left of celebrating political violence.
“Do you really think that the only reason we are celebrating this man’s death is because he said he wanted to preserve the Second Amendment rights? Charlie Kirk said, ‘If I had a 10-year-old daughter, I would make her carry a baby to term even though she was raped.’ I hope he rots in the ground,” one user said on TikTok.
Adding fuel to the controversy, Jezebel published an article two days before the shooting titled, ‘We Paid Some Etsy Witches to Curse Charlie Kirk.’
The piece joked about buying spells to inconvenience Kirk, like giving him zits or making his podcast mic malfunction, but insisted it did not call for physical harm.
“I want to make it clear, I’m not calling on dark forces to cause him harm,” the Jezebel article said. “I just want him to wake up every morning with an inexplicable zit. I want his podcast microphone to malfunction every time he hits record. I want his blue blazers to suddenly all be one size too small."
“I want one of his socks to always be sliding down his foot. I want his thumb to grow too big to tweet. To ruin his day with the collective feminist power of the Etsy coven would be my life’s greatest joy.”
Videos of his anti-gun control stance went viral online
Image credits: New York Yankees/X
After the assassination, Jezebel added an editor’s note: “Jezebel condemns the shooting of Charlie Kirk in the strongest possible terms. We do not endorse, encourage, or excuse political violence of any kind.”
Despite the online vitriol, leaders from both parties condemned the assassination.
U.S. President Trump called Kirk “Great, and even Legendary,” and ordered flags lowered to half-staff until Sunday in honor of the late media personality.
Former U.S. President Barack Obama also weighed in, writing, “This kind of despicable violence has no place in our democracy. Michelle and I will be praying for Charlie’s family tonight, especially his wife Erika and their two young children.”
Rep. Brian Mast, who chairs the House Foreign Affairs Committee, told Daily Mail, “I lost a friend today.”
California Democrat Ro Khanna also expressed sadness, saying, “Political violence has no place in America. I’m saddened, and we need to do better as citizens of this country, the hate, and anger that has taken over.”
Videos from the Utah event showed chaos breaking out seconds after the single shot that hit Kirk was fired.
Kirk was struck just as he began answering a question about mass shootings.
“He was shot in the neck and just fell over, and he was just a fountain of blood,” a witness told Daily Mail.
Yet in the middle of the chaos, people could also be seen celebrating the shooting.
Image Credits: X
Kirk built a following among young conservatives with his debates on college campuses and his podcast. He was outspoken against abortion, gender-affirming care for transgender people, gun control, vaccine mandates, and what he called “woke indoctrination” in schools.
Even among those who oppose Kirk’s views, open celebration of his assassination is widely seen as crossing a moral line.
Authorities initially detained two people in connection with the shooting, but later released them.
FBI Director Kash Patel confirmed late Wednesday that the gunman remained at large.