Charlie Kirk, a conservative activist, was shot and killed in Orem, Utah, a week before he was to appear in Tennessee.
Kirk, 31, was assaulted while participating in a Q&A session with students at Utah Valley University. The university announced that at 1:15 p.m. MT apprehended a suspect. However, Scott Trotter, a spokesperson for the university, informed the New York Times that authorities had concluded the individual taken into custody was not the shooter. Campus police chose not to provide comments when contacted by USA TODAY.
President Donald Trump issued a statement on Truth Social at 3:40 p.m. Sept. 10 announcing Kirk’s death.
“The Great, and even Legendary, Charlie Kirk, is dead,” he stated. “No one understood or had the Heart of the Youth in the United States of America better than Charlie. He was loved and admired by ALL, especially me, and now, he is no longer with us. Melania and my Sympathies go out to his beautiful wife Erika, and family. Charlie, we love you!”
Utah Valley University was the latest stop on Kirk’s The American Comeback Tour with his organization Turning Point USA. More than 6,800 people had signed a petition prior to the event requesting that faculty prevent Kirk from speaking.
Here’s what to know about the conservative activist and his work in Tennessee.
Who is Charlie Kirk?
Kirk was a political activist who was born in Arlington Heights, Illinois. He briefly attended Harper College in Palatine, Illinois, before dropping out and subsequently founding Turning Point USA.
He was married to Erika Kirk, an entrepreneur, and the father of two children. Their daughter was born in August 2022, and they had a son in 2024.
Kirk was an influential member of the conservative movement over the past decade. His most significant contribution to the movement was through his efforts to recruit young voters on college campuses. He did this through his organization, Turning Point USA, and during his “You’re Being Brainwashed” tour ahead of the 2024 presidential election.
In 2024, he spoke at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, where he gave a speech focusing on what Kirk says he heard from young people around the U.S.
Charlie Kirk in Tennessee
According to reports, the shooting occurred just as Kirk was about to start a nationwide tour of college debates across the US. The tour, called “The American Comeback Tour,” was scheduled to visit places like Colorado State University and the University of Minnesota, among other college campuses.
In a brief break from the tour, Kirk was set to speak in Murfreesboro at the Culture and Christianity Conference from Sept. 19 to 20. He was one of 18 speakers set to give a speech during the two-day event.
The event is focused on connecting attendees to God and following in his voice and truth in the current political climate.
“Every day we have is a gift from the Lord,” Pastor Allen Jackson, another conference speaker, wrote on Instagram. “What occurred on Utah Valley University’s campus today is a sobering reminder of that.”
Charlie Kirk’s comments in the wake of Nashville Covenant School shooting
Shortly after The Covenant School shooting in Nashville that took the lives of three students and three adults March, 27, 2023, Kirk made comments saying gun violence is necessary to keep the Second Amendment.
“I think it’s worth it,” Kirk said responding to a question about a recent shooting at a Turning Point USA Faith event April 5, 2023 in Salt Lake City, Utah. “I think it’s worth to have a cost of, unfortunately, some gun deaths every single year so that we can have the Second Amendment to protect our other God-given rights.”
The comments resurfaced on social posts in the wake of Kirk’s shooting.
Turning Point USA on Tennessee’s college campuses
Back in March, the University of Tennessee Humanities amphitheater hosted thousands of students cheering on Kirk, especially as he faced challengers during a public debate he features in all his campus visits. Students filled the benches to listen to Kirk speak and debate.
The goal was to challenge the notion that college campuses are liberal, and UT students used Kirk, who frequently aimed at the country’s higher education system, to do it.
Turning Point USA has brought conservative figures to the University of Memphis’ campus in the past few years. Kyle Rittenhouse and Riley Gaines are both conservative activists who were invited to speak at the university through Turning Point USA.
There have been two events that Rittenhouse attended and spoke at on the University of Memphis’ campus. The first time Rittenhouse came to campus was March 20, 2024. The second visit was earlier this year on Feb. 26; both times, Rittenhouse was invited to speak by Turning Point USA.
Riley Gaines, a conservative activist, was set to speak at an event with Tennessee Homeschoolers on Sept. 11, but the event was cancelled in the wake of Kirk’s shooting.
Turning Point USA’s chapter at the University of Memphis invited Gaines to speak at the UC Theater on campus on Nov. 5. She is a Nashville native who has become involved in political activism over the past few years, following her time as a swimmer for the University of Kentucky from 2019 to 2022.
Jordan Green covers trending news for The Commercial Appeal. She can be reached at jordan.green@commercialappeal.com.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Charlie Kirk’s impact in TN: From campus events to gun deaths comment