Campus Reacts to Charlie Kirk’s Murder

Right-wing activist Charlie Kirk’s murder on Wednesday sparked intense public discourse both on campus and across the nation.

Kirk, who was 31 years old, was fatally shot while speaking to audience members at Utah Valley University (UVU) during the first leg of his 14-city “American Comeback Tour.” The suspected shooter, 22-year-old Tyler Robinson, was identified and charged on Friday.

Kirk was the co-founder of the youth conservative group Turning Point USA, a non-profit organization dedicated to advocating for conservative politics on high school and college campuses throughout the nation.

Many students on campus reported that discourse surrounding the shooting was hard to avoid. Students, regardless of political affiliation, had complicated feelings about Kirk’s death.

Overall, students emphasized that any kind of violence, especially gun violence, should always be condemned — regardless of the politics involved.

“Violence of any kind is unacceptable, including the gun violence directed towards public figures, our communities, and children every day,” Co-President of Amherst College Democrats Caroline Flinn ’28, who is also an assistant opinion editor for The Student, said.

On the anonymous social media platform Fizz, several now-deleted anonymous posts appeared to be celebrating Kirk’s killing.

“having no father is better than charlie kirk as a father,” one anonymous post read. 

In line with these anonymous comments, some conservative students expressed concern about what they believe was a lack of overall sympathy from the majority of the campus. 

“I didn’t agree with Charlie Kirk on everything. But one thing is clear: He valued dialogue and believed in challenging people’s views through conversation. That’s why the celebration of his death on this campus is something I never expected — especially from ‘the party of tolerance,’” Marvin Oprean ’27, member of the Amherst College Conservatives (ACC), said. 

Oscar Gosling '27, co-president of the ACC, further expressed disappointment in anyone who celebrated Kirk’s murder.“Those on this campus who have celebrated his murder should recognise the assault on their right to engage critically in politics, a right for which Charlie advocated on behalf of young people more than anyone,” Gosling said. 

Other students on campus, many of whom viewed most of Kirk’s political rhetoric as destructive and inflammatory, refuted the idea that a majority of students on campus were celebrating Kirk’s death, calling it “an exaggeration,” according to Xyoa Wilding ’28.  

“I don’t celebrate his death, but I also don’t mourn it,” Wilding said. Wilding, who condemned the murder, expressed disdain at the fact that media coverage of Kirk’s death overshadowed other acts of violence, like the Evergreen High School shooting in Colorado, which took place on the same day as Kirk’s murder.“I think this event is getting more coverage than other things of comparable or higher caliber. I think that the amount of space it’s taking up in public discourse, and especially online, is disproportionate [to] the effects that it’s having,” Wilding said. National conversation surrounding Kirk’s death largely resorted to the usual back-and-forth between the two sides of the political spectrum, such as President Donald Trump’s statement, in which he blamed Kirk’s killing on the “radical left.”

Many students on campus view Kirk’s murder as a product and likely catalyst of further polarization in the nation.“It scared me that polarization seems to be exponentially increasing when we, as a country, should be focused on turning the temperature down,” said Flinn.

In a Thursday email to the college, President Michael Elliott encouraged students to participate in the campus’ Democracy Day this Wednesday and reminded students that violence on the basis of views or opinions has no place on campus. He also urged students to be respectful on Fizz, likely in response to aforementioned posts made on the app directly following Kirk’s death. Elliott implored students to keep in mind the college’s mission: “If you want to build a better Amherst, consistent with our ideals and purpose, delete the [Fizz] app and own your words by taking responsibility for them.”

“It is especially deplorable when [violence] occurs on a college campus in the United States,” Elliott wrote. “[This is] a place that should be unconditionally safe for the exchange of viewpoints, even those we find disagreeable.”