Charlie Kirk, 31, was fatally shot on September 10 while speaking at Utah Valley University. On September 21, nearly 100,000 people gathered at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona, for his memorial.
His widow, Erika Kirk, gave an emotional tribute, saying, “My husband, he wanted to save young men, just like the one who took his life… I forgive him because it was what Christ did, and it is what Charlie would do.” She promised to continue his mission as the new leader of Turning Point USA, adding, “The answer to hate is not hate… the answer… is love and always love.”
Erika described seeing her husband’s body: “I felt shock. I felt horror… but there was something else, too… I also saw on his lips the faintest smile.” Doctors told her the wound was unsurvivable. “One moment, Charlie was doing what he loved… then he blinked and saw his savior in paradise.”
Donald Trump, the headline speaker, praised Kirk as “a martyr now for America’s freedom” and “a great of his generation.” He added, “That’s where I disagree with Charlie. I hate my opponents and I don’t want what’s best for them.”
The moment Trump hugged Erika caught attention online, not for the gesture but his facial expression. TikTok users called it “weird” and unsettling, sparking viral reactions.
