Turning Point USA Founder and conservative activist Charlie Kirk was not the martyr President Donald Trump is making him out to be. His platform was built on “crushing woke lies” and spreading harmful rhetoric about all minorities. He preached protecting the Second Amendment and proceeded to die on that hill.
The Trump administration, Kirk, and many conservative Americans have been pushing false narratives in an attempt to make transgender individuals out to be the villains. In reality, time and time again, we see conservative white males as the suspects in countless school shootings, one of which happened the same day as Kirk’s assassination. But which tragedy from that day are students seeing all over social media?
Maybe this is the straw that broke the camel’s back for conservative Americans aligned with Kirk’s beliefs to finally see the negative effects of gun violence. That clarity did not seem to come from the continuing list of children who have lost their lives to gun violence, or the many lost lives to hate crimes.
Unfortunately, the administration is putting the spotlight on Kirk, wanting to “carry out his legacy,” completely disregarding the tragedy at a Colorado high school and the ongoing gun violence crisis unfolding across the nation.
While Kirk was an avid defender of free speech, it is hypocritical for those who idolized him to bash those using that same free speech to disagree with Kirk and his opinions. Many of his followers have taken it upon themselves to ruin the lives of those posting on social media if they do not show enough sympathy for their “hero.”
It is evident that violence cannot be solved with more violence. The Equinox believes the idea of pointing fingers on both sides of the political spectrum is only causing more harm and does not contribute to positive change.
We also condemn Kirk’s death, and all forms of political violence, but to say that one cannot criticize Kirk in death or risk facing career-ending consequences is simply ludicrous.
History shows that when our country is divided, it leads to civil war. Instead of setting our country back decades, the American people need to recognize the real villain, the Trump administration. Our government has shown that their sympathy only extends to the president’s buddies: Rich, fascist white guys, such as Kirk.
It is deeply sad that the Trump administration has not used this moment to call for a “cooling of temperatures,” but rather an attempt to springboard into authoritarian policies, with Kirk’s death being the flame that lit the fire.
With the discussion that persists around Kirk’s death dividing our country, we cannot keep taking one side or the other. Democracy will not only continue to decline but also plummet to its inevitable death.
It’s not Democrats vs. Republicans or liberals vs. conservatives; it’s the American people vs. the Trump administration, right in front of all of our faces. We cannot turn a blind eye and use Kirk’s death as fuel for the fire of fascism.
