Conservative activist Charlie Kirk, who died after being shot on Wednesday while delivering a speech at Utah Valley University, was known for his radical statements that seemed designed to provoke those who disagreed with him. He was a proponent of guns and believed that the cost of gun deaths in the USA was justified.
A right-wing activist and co-founder of Turning Point USA, a conservative organization, Kirk helped mobilize young Trump voters and was well-known for his „Prove Me Wrong” video series, where he debated with students on various topics on American university campuses.
Kirk was also a well-known radio host and podcaster who frequently used his platforms to criticize liberal views on various subjects such as gun control, climate change, civil rights movement, and issues related to sexual minorities.
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CBC reviews some of the most controversial statements made by Charlie Kirk.
Gun Control
A few years ago, Kirk made a comment about how some gun deaths in the USA could still ensure the existence of the Second Amendment of the US Constitution, regarding the right to bear arms.
"It's worth having a cost of gun deaths every year, unfortunately, so we can have the Second Amendment to protect our other God-given rights," he said during a speech on April 5, 2023, delivered at the Awaken Church campus in Salt Lake City.
Wednesday, just moments before being shot at Utah Valley University, someone from the audience asked Kirk how many mass shooters in the past 10 years were transgender Americans. "Too many," Kirk replied.
The person from the audience mentioned the number was five, then asked Kirk if he knows how many mass shooters there have been in America in the past 10 years. "Are we counting gang violence or not?" Kirk replied.
A few seconds later, a loud noise, sounding like a gunshot, was heard, and Kirk was seen briefly touching his neck before falling from his chair as participants started running. A single bullet killed Charlie Kirk, a gun advocate.
Civil Rights
Wired magazine reported that at a political conference in December 2023 hosted by his political group Turning Points USA, Kirk criticized Martin Luther King Jr., calling him "awful." "He's not a good person," he further stated about the civil rights leader.
Kirk also criticized the 1965 Civil Rights Act, which banned discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, and national origin and prohibited segregation: "I have a very, very radical opinion on this, but I can defend it, and I've thought about it. We made a huge mistake when we passed the Civil Rights Act in the 1960s."
He argued that this brought what he called a "permanent" bureaucracy meant to promote diversity, equity, and inclusion.
Conspiracy Theories
During the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic, Kirk frequently shared conspiracy theories on social media and was temporarily banned by Twitter for spreading fake news.
In March 2020, he posted about the "China virus" - a phrase that was quickly adopted by then-American President Donald Trump during his first term.
In December 2020, the year-end gala organized by Turning Point USA took place in Florida, despite the state's efforts to mitigate COVID-19.
Additionally, Charlie Kirk compared vaccination rules to apartheid in a 2021 interview with Tucker Carlson.
In a February 2024 Instagram post, Kirk referenced the "great replacement" conspiracy theory (which has been widely debunked), suggesting that undocumented immigrants come to the USA to replace white Americans.
Empathy and Debate
In the October 12, 2022 episode of "The Charlie Kirk Show," the conservative activist discussed how former American President Bill Clinton used empathy and sympathy as a political strategy.
Kirk focused on the term empathy. "I actually hate the word empathy. I think empathy is a New Age term that does a lot of damage," he said.
His admirers, however, highlighted that despite his confrontational rhetoric, Kirk enjoyed debate and free exchange of ideas. So, it probably wasn't a surprise when he chose to appreciate an episode of the animated satirical show "South Park," aired on Comedy Central, where he was mocked, as a justification of "our viral cultural dominance."
"We have to have a good spirit about irony," he said on YouTube about the August 6 episode featuring debates in the style of "Prove Me Wrong" with the show's vulgar character, Eric Cartman, portraying Kirk.
"Everything is a success, everything is a victory. We, as conservatives, have thick skin, not thin skin. And you can laugh at us, it doesn't matter," Kirk emphasized.
T.D.