On the Assassination of Charlie Kirk

Charlie Kirk was at Utah Valley University yesterday to engage in political debate with students as he so often did. It was the beginning of what was supposed to be a 15-stop campus tour. Thousands of attendees, mostly young people, were there to see him. Though a petition had been circulating to prevent his talk, the university rightly stood by the event, citing its commitments to free expression and institutional neutrality. Security and police were present because Charlie’s events often attracted protests and threatening behavior, but then something categorically different happened: Just as the event was beginning, Charlie was murdered.

We send our prayers and condolences to Charlie’s wife, his young son and daughter, his friends, and his colleagues. This is a horrific tragedy that has left us all stunned.

Everyone should be able to express his or her views and engage in debate with others on a college campus without fear for personal safety. For years, we have heard people say that words are violence and that speech causes harm. The percentage of students who say it is acceptable to shout down a speaker or even use violence to stop someone from speaking is rising, not declining. People are demonized and excluded and silenced because of their social and political views. We have seen protests tip into vandalism and violence before. Now a man who was visiting a campus to participate in the free exchange of ideas has been assassinated.

What happened to Charlie is part of a rise in political violence in our country that transcends higher education. But we must recognize that rising intolerance and willingness to endorse violence as a response to speech on our campuses is part of the alarming trend. America’s institutions of higher education must be part of the solution, not part of the problem. They can help by truly embracing free expression, openness to diversity of thought, and educating their students to engage in civil debate with one another—especially when they profoundly disagree. As Charlie once said, “when people stop talking, that’s when violence happens.”

Discussion, dialogue, debate, and persuasion are the tools of civilization and human flourishing. The appalling crime and the tragic loss of Charlie presents a dire warning that we must do better. Unless we do, our nation, our values, civilization itself will fail us.

Michael Poliakoff
President

Steven McGuire
Paul & Karen Levy Fellow in Campus Freedom