Charlie Kirk On Why He Went Around To Universities To Talk To College Students: “When People Stop Talking, That’s When Violence Happens”

Such a sad day for our country.

Regardless of how you feel about Charlie Kirk’s political views, it should go without saying that shooting somebody because you disagree with them should never be acceptable in the United States of America. Silencing those with opposing views is one of the key components of fascism, which is what those who oppose Charlie’s views claim to be fighting against.

That’s why it was so tragic when Kirk was assassinated this afternoon during a stop on his The American Comeback tour at Utah Valley University.

Graphic video from the tragic scene showed a single shot striking Kirk in the neck before he fell to the ground and the crowd went running. As of right now, it doesn’t appear that any suspect in custody after FBI director Kash Patel announced that a previously-arrested individual has been released.

Kirk, whose full name was Charles James Kirk, was an American conservative political activist, author, and media personality. He was famously known for being a founder of Turning Point USA, a nonprofit organization that advocates for conservative politics on high school, college, and university campuses. And he was also a devout Christian, often speaking about his faith and belief in Biblical values.

The popular political pundit was famous for traveling around to various college campuses, speaking to students on political topics. Given his outward right-wing views, his events often attracted many left-wing attendees anxious to debate or argue, and he was often the subject of protests and criticism from the left, though he encouraged thoughtful debate over violence and arguments.

And in the wake of his death, a video of Kirk explaining his reasoning for speaking to college students, and encouraging peaceful debate, has gone viral.

In the video, Kirk is asked what he was doing at a particular campus, and he responded with a now-haunting warning about political discourse:

“That’s what’s so important to our country, to find our disagreements respectfully, because when people stop talking, that’s when violence happens.

It’s a growing trend because people like me are facing violence, assaults from the left, the campus Antifa. I’ve been stormed out of restaurants, I’ve been assaulted publicly, multiple death threats.”

And when asked what his goal was, Kirk said it was to show the power of respectful debate:

“There’s more pople that agree with me than some people would actually believe, and they come out of the woodwork when I do stuff like this. We record all of it so that we put it on the internet so people can see these ideas collide. When people stop talking, that’s when you get violence. That’s when civil war happens. Because you start to think the other side is so evil and they lose their humanity.”

Such a powerful statement that turned out to be all too prophetic.

Kirk leaves behind a wife, Erika, and two young children, a 3-year old daughter and a 1-year old son, and a legacy as one of the most important political figures of the last two decades who never held public office.The post Charlie Kirk On Why He Went Around To Universities To Talk To College Students: “When People Stop Talking, That’s When Violence Happens” first appeared on Whiskey Riff.