John Locher

Charlie Kirk’s death last Wednesday — captured, unfortunately, in graphic detail — has captivated the country. Kirk’s death is a sad and jarring reflection of the state of politics in America, and is, on a human scale, a tragedy. There is no other way to put it. 

You might have disagreed with the things he said or the way that he carried himself. You might despise his fanbase; Kirk was a bastion of MAGA-centric rhetoric and, on many occasions, espoused messages that subverted facts in favor of an attention-grabbing narrative. All of this is true. It is fair to dislike someone — to hate someone, even — based on the things that come out of their mouth. People have freedom of speech in this country, and we also have the freedom to judge people based on what they say. 

What is not acceptable, though, is to celebrate a person’s violent death. Put politics aside for a second and look at this from the perspective of a decent human being. Kirk was a father of two; he had a daughter who was born just last year. He built his brand, Turning Point USA, from the ground up, starting when he was only 18 years old. Kirk was passionate about sharing conservative ideals; the mission of Turning Point was to start a grassroots movement that spread those ideals across colleges around the country by way of public debate. There are a lot of problems with the content of what Kirk has said, and with Turning Point USA as an organization, but the principle of debating people in person has admirable bones. 

The point is that Kirk wasn’t some sort of villain who ‘got what he deserved.’ What human being deserves to be gunned down while giving a speech? The sad irony of the situation is that he died doing something that this country could benefit a lot more from, which is open-forum political debate. Of course, that seems much less likely now. Whether you liked him or not, Kirk’s assassination is something that every American should look at and be ashamed of. 

Freedom of speech is the pinnacle of what makes this country great. Freedom of speech means freedom of ideas; people with different opinions get together and engage in discourse. People bring their ideas and opinions — molded by their life experiences and educations — and they pit their brains against each other. The result isn’t always ‘perfect,’ but the ability to debate people and the freedom to disagree with one another have done a lot for this country. America has its problems, but you can always count on Americans to have strong opinions and to be vocal about them, and I think that this ultimately works itself out as a net benefit.

The sad reality of Kirk’s death is that public-forum political discourse will likely become even rarer (and possibly extinct), continuing a negative trend in the last year. And that type of open political discourse is what this country needs right now. Political opinions have migrated, almost exclusively, to the digital realm. People are bombarded with politics on social media, where outrageous opinions and misinformation run amok, and the quality of discourse on the internet just doesn’t come close to being face-to-face. People can say whatever they want, but it is a lot different when you have to look someone else in the eye when you make a point. 

I am making a lot of generalizations here and I realize that. Charlie Kirk said plenty of nasty things. His organization contributed to some very dubious causes. But when you strip away all of the politics and look at the bare bones of what he stood for, there is something meritorious in all of it.

Everyone has a lot to say about the state of the country these days, and I think that is a good thing. You disagree with a certain facet of American life? Let’s hear it. You think that the people running this country are liars and grifters who are manipulating the apparatus of our government for their own personal gain? Good. Make your position known. You should, and you are entitled to do so. But get out and do it in person if you can. That is what I am saying here. I wish there were more outlets for us to get out and debate ‘mano a mano,’ and, for all of his flaws, that was the good thing that Kirk stood for. 

It is completely okay to disagree with people based on what they say. If you hate Charlie Kirk because of the messages that he espoused, then I completely understand that. Everyone has an opinion that they are entitled to, and that is defensible. But don’t celebrate the death of another human being. Whether your politics are left, right or center, we are all Americans, and we are better than that.