Charlie Kirk was pronounced dead in the late afternoon of September 12 after receiving a single gunshot to the neck while speaking at Utah Valley University. Due to his largely right-wing views and commentary, his death triggered a large response from both sides of the aisle.
His death was shocking to me for one clear reason: someone in the United States was shot and killed for expressing their opinion. Charlie Kirk never held a political office at any level and gained fame for sharing his ideas. This isn’t about his views, values, or morals. Rather, this is about every citizen's right to speak their mind without fear of violence or harm.
My fear is not new, as Americans have been warning about this danger since our country's founding. In an essay published by the Pennsylvania Gazette in 1738, Ben Franklin wrote, “Freedom of speech is a principal pillar of a free government; when this support is taken away, the constitution of a free society is dissolved, and tyranny is erected on its ruins.” This idea is as relevant now as when it was written, and Kirk's death underscores it further still.
Franklin’s message is not confined only to old essays and our history books. Patrice Lumumba, Congo’s first Prime Minister, was brutally assassinated on the 16th of January 1961, one year into his premiership. He pushed for sweeping change, and his death left the country in lasting political instability and violence. In the Congo, violence replaced discourse, and the entire country lost its voice. I worry that the same danger lurks here in the United States. Kirk’s assassination replaced an open discourse with violence, and history shows us that when societies choose violence over free speech, the effects reach far beyond an individual. Silencing one voice weakens the entire country and pushes our nation into further instability. Although Patrice Lumumba may seem like a warning from a faraway land, the implications of his death are critical as the United States turns the page in response to Kirk's assassination.
This should terrify every American.
Charlie Kirk’s assassination is not just a national tragedy; it’s a warning. A gun silenced his voice, and now fear threatens to silence us all. When violence punishes those who speak out, the natural response is self-censorship that will spread through our country and, most dangerously, our schools. If we learn to hide what we believe, the very principles of this country begin to erode. Kirk's death is not about politics or opinions; it is about the direction our country is headed—one that violates the very freedoms our founding fathers swore to protect with their lives.
