A group of conservatives, led by Florida Representative Anna Paulina Luna, has called on House Speaker Mike Johnson to commission a statue of Charlie Kirk in the U.S. Capitol following his assassination.
“This is not a symbolic gesture, but a permanent testament to his life’s work, his courage, and his sacrifice,” the letter, signed by 12 other members of Congress, read. “It will stand as a reminder that political disagreement must never be answered with violence, and that the fight for truth must carry on.”
Kirk, 31, was shot while debating students at a public event at Utah Valley University in Utah on Wednesday. He had been speaking about transgender mass shootings when he was hit in the neck with a bullet. A manhunt is still underway for his killer.
“His death has left a family forever altered,” the letter continued. “His wife, Erika, and their two young children now wake each day without a husband and father because of an act of political violence.”
In their letter, the members highlighted Kirk’s strong faith, which “guided every word he spoke and every cause he embraced,” and the influence he had on younger generations of Americans through his right-wing advocacy group Turning Point USA.
“His work inspired countless young people to pursue truth and to enter public life with conviction rather than fear.”
Politicians on both sides of the political aisle have spoken out condemning the act of “political violence” that caused Kirk’s death, including many prominent Democrats, including former president Joe Biden, former vice president Kamala Harris, Senators Nancy Pelosi, Elizabeth Warren and Barack Obama.
“This kind of despicable violence has no place in our democracy. Michelle and I will be praying for Charlie’s family tonight, especially his wife Erika and their two young children,” Obama said in a post after news of the fatal shooting broke.
Despite this, the letter from Luna and her GOP colleagues claimed a “broader cultural intolerance” that had enabled the tragedy of Kirk’s death, the blame for which was placed at the feet of the Democrats and the Left.
“Hateful rhetoric from the Left has created a toxic environment where one side finds it acceptable to stoke fear and violence to silence civil dissent,” the letter read. “We must be clear: They are the hate they claim to fight. Their words caused this. Their hate caused this.”
Experts have warned that Kirk’s assassination is the latest in a deeply concerning surge in political violence across the U.S. during the Trump era.
“It’s clear that we’ve had some major political violence incidents in the last few years and that it is more than we had come to expect, certainly since say the 1960s,” Wendy Via, CEO of the Global Project Against Hate and Extremism, told The Independent. “Political violence has been around as long as there have been politics, but I do think that the last few years are different.”
