The fatal shooting of Charlie Kirk at a Utah college event has put a spotlight on tensions over free speech at universities, where conservatives, including President Trump, have said campuses are intolerant of right-wing speakers and thought.
Kirk, a Trump ally widely credited for revitalizing Republican movements among college students, was speaking before thousands at Utah Valley University when he was shot in the neck. The event was similar to dozens he has held over the years — including at UCLA, USC and Cal State campuses. Kirk typically would sit under a tent to debate attendees who challenged his right-wing views on immigration, gender identity, criminal policy, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, abortion and other hot-button subjects.
As a conservative provocateur, his style and beliefs frequently drew campus protests and petitions from liberal students and faculty seeking to cancel his appearances. The Utah event was no exception. An open letter prior to his engagement asked the university to “[re-evaluate] the decision to allow Charlie Kirk to speak” because he was against “inclusivity and unity.”
But Utah Valley University leaders said they wanted the campus to be a place “where ideas — popular or controversial — can be exchanged freely, energetically, and civilly” and where “free expression thrives and all voices are respected.” They said the university “does not take official positions on political, social, or cultural controversies.”
The shooting comes as colleges face harsh repercussions from the Trump administration over volatile and widespread pro-Palestinian protests last year. At the time, university leaders struggled to draw the line between free speech and unacceptable behavior under campus codes of conduct. Trump has accused universities of being intolerant of conservative philosophies, and made broad demands for more conservative faculty hires.
In statements and interviews Wednesday, politicians, activists and college conservatives called for greater tolerance of right-wing speech at universities. In recent years, guests invited by Republican clubs or chapters of Turning Point USA — the group that Kirk led — have routinely incited protests, event cancellations and threats at campuses across the country.
“Historically, our university campuses in this nation and here in the state of Utah have been the place where truth and ideas are formulated and debated. And that’s what he does,” said Republican Utah Governor Spencer Cox, who called the shooting a “political assassination.”
The manhunt for the shooter continued Wednesday night.
Kamy Akhavan, managing director for the USC Dornsife Center for the Political Future, said in an email that “we should be deeply troubled when anyone chooses to silence opinions with violence.”
Universities, he said, need to have prominent liberal and conservative speakers to challenge students’ ideologies.
“Today much of our educational system has steered away from discussions of current events and politics for fear of institutional, external, or even personal retribution,” Akhavan said. “We have become really bad at communicating over the things that matter most because we just don’t talk about them.”
Kirk’s has death prompted an outpouring from campus liberals in addition to Republican youth.
In a statement Wednesday, the College Democrats of America said: “We convey our thoughts and prayers to his loved ones. We, alongside many, are mourning his death and condemn political and gun violence.”
College Republicans of America said that “campuses must be places where arguments are answered with better arguments — not bullets.” College chapters planned vigils for Kirk to take place Thursday.
“The college Republican movement won’t be deterred by this at all,” said Martin Bertao, the organization’s national president and a junior at UC Berkeley. “We will be emboldened.” Bertao said he felt there was a “crusade” by college students to “silence people they don’t agree with.”
Survey finds more opposition to campus speech
A national survey released the day before the shooting gives weight to the views of both Akhavan and Bertao.
The poll, conducted by the free speech watchdog group Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression and College Pulse, found a majority of students have a low tolerance for controversial ideas.
One in three students also said that violence was “rarely” acceptable to halt campus speech.
“The atmosphere isn’t just cautious — it’s hostile. Students continue to show low tolerance for controversial speakers, and troublingly, more believe it’s acceptable to shout down a speaker, block access to events or even resort to violence to silence campus speech than ever before,” the report said.
Mary Corey, a senior continuing lecturer at UCLA’s history department who studies American social movements and popular culture, said Kirk’s death disturbed her.
“I wish it hadn’t happened — it makes me cringe, it makes me unhappy, it makes me more afraid,” said Corey.
Kirk regularly toured California colleges
Since he co-founded Turning Point USA 12 years ago, Kirk’s organization has grown to include over 3,500 chapters across the country, many on college campuses. Before his death, Kirk’s “prove me wrong table” tour was scheduled to continue at Colorado State University and more than a dozen campuses from Minnesota to Virginia.
In March, he appeared at USC and Cal State Northridge, where promoters handed out “Make America Great Again” and “47” hats in support of Trump. At those events, Kirk challenged diversity, equity and inclusion programs and affirmative action.
“Affirmative action by definition will elevate race-based type acceptance or hiring quotas above excellence-based,” Kirk said to a crowd of hundreds at USC, according to a report in Annenberg Media. “We believe that only merit should matter when you have college admissions, or when you hire people into corporations that skin color should have no bearing in such admissions.”
His debates with students frequently went viral on Instagram and TikTok. Opponents criticized Kirk, saying he argued with people who were far younger — some teenagers — instead of peers. Kirk said that his role was to encourage critical thinking against a tide of dominant campus liberalism.
Kirk spoke to hundreds on May 1 at UC San Diego, and more than 1,000 attendees in a sea of red MAGA shirts and hats May 5 at Cal State Long Beach. Both events drew minor protests and clashes, but no significant violence, according to campus news reports.
At a May 9 appearance at UC Riverside, he debated attendees over topics including abortion rights and his support for Israel; a punk rock performance in protest of Kirk’s event was shut down for violating campus policies, according to the student-run Highlander newspaper.
Conservative campus visitors face challenges
Conservatives have long faced campus pushback in California.
In 2017, during Trump’s first term, right-wing personality Milo Yiannopoulos’ appearances set off violent protests that shut down events at UC Davis and UC Berkeley.
The next year, the Bruin Republicans group canceled a Yiannopoulos event at UCLA titled, “10 Things I Hate About Mexico.” The group said it called off the engagement because it “polarized the leadership of the organization.” And then-UCLA chancellor Gene Block said he was glad, because the subject was “contrary to our values.”
Ben Shapiro, another popular conservative media figure, has also faced opposition over the years for his events at California campuses, among them UCLA and UC Santa Barbara. But the engagements were not canceled, including an October 2024 speech at UCLA that prompted extra security.
For Kirk’s Utah event, security had also been a concern. Campus police deployed six officers there, according to initial reports. Kirk also had his own security detail. At least 3,000 people converged in the university quad, an outdoor bowl-type courtyard. It’s believed that the shooter targeted Kirk from the roof of a building.
Eli Tsives, a pro-Israel student activist at UCLA who attended a Kirk event in 2023, said he mourned for Kirk, whose death he said will motivate student conservatives to speak up on campus.
“We’re going to become louder and more outspoken,” Tsives said. “And we’re going to do it for him because that’s what he dedicated his life to,”
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