A week on from the shocking assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk, the repercussions are rippling through American society, heightening political divisions and sparking heated debates over free speech and gun violence.
Kirk was shot in the neck by a sniper’s rifle last Wednesday and died later that day. Within 33 hours, police had their man: 22-year-old Tyler Robinson, arrested after his own father tipped off investigators. Robinson allegedly confessed to the crime to his partner, according to released texts. The messages reveal he took issue with Kirk’s “hatred” and that he’d planned the attack for days. He’s now charged with aggravated murder and several other offences, with the state pushing for the death penalty.
Almost immediately, the incident was wielded as a political weapon.
🔹A now-defunct website appeared soon after Kirk’s killing, compiling lists of individuals celebrating Kirk’s death, encouraging doxxing and reports to employers. Backed by right-wing influencers and even Trump officials, it has led to over 30 firings or investigations, including MSNBC’s Matthew Dowd, university deans, pilots, teachers, and business owners. The website was shut down on Tuesday, but the damage was done.
🔹Trump officials began pushing for a crackdown on liberal nonprofits, framing them as complicit in violence. Guest-hosting Kirk’s own podcast on Monday, Deputy President JD Vance singled out George Soros’s Open Society Foundations and the Ford Foundation, saying both benefited from a “generous tax treatment”. Attempts to revoke their tax status will most certainly end in a constitutional court battle.
🔹The escalation reached mainstream media yesterday, with ABC suspending “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” indefinitely following the host’s comments, saying “The Maga Gang [is] desperately trying to characterise this kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them, and doing everything they can to score political points from it”.
But where did the shooter stand ideologically? Conservatives insist Robinson was radicalised by the left, given references to anti-fascism in bullet engravings. But the FBI says there’s no proof he’s tied to any big “radical left” plot.
The irony is profound. Kirk, a free speech crusader, died at a debate he organised to promote it. Yet, those using their freedom of speech to comment on his death—often mocking his pro-gun stance and his quip that “some gun deaths are worth it”—are being silenced. Liberals have decried the rise of ‘cancel culture,’ which conservatives have complained about previously.
The fact is, political violence is an issue in the US across the political divide, with Republicans and Democrats coming under attack. Might the real enemy be that hoary old chestnut in American life… gun control?
