Recommendations of the Editorial team
“Charlie Kirk was the one who admitted to us, and that is exactly why these radical left had to turn it off,” said one of my football teammates on my strictly conservative college. He wasn’t the only one. Many were understandably angry. But instead of just focusing on the perpetrator, they blamed all the left. This impulse to blame the entire opposite side for the act of an individual is not new. And he sows hate that only deepens our trenches.
Kirk’s influence on an entire generation
Growing up in the early 2020s, Charlie Kirk’s face was omnipresent. This formed how my generation of politics and the world perceived. For many conservative friends, he was not just a voice in the movement – he was an icon that redefined it. Confrontation, cultural rebellion and “demonstrate the liberals” became the core of what young republicans meant. But this influence made hostility to the norm, with threats and violence instead of reasonable discussion.
I am in a special position to watch it. I have completed a conservative boy school in Chicago and now visit a right -wing college in the south, where I play football. In both places I learned to keep my liberal views for me. For the first time I heard in Kirk’s middle school. He became really known in my high school time when a friend showed me a viral video in which he destroyed a “Woke” student rhetorically when it comes to abortion. From then on everyone seemed to know his name.
Life in conservative spaces showed me a disturbing development: Many of my teammates openly said that they “had never had a democrat to a friend” because “Democrats hate our country” and “evil cannot make friends”. Such statements are more than political disagreements – it is seeds of hate that grow in distrust and dehumanization. Anyone who sees the others only as a “traitor” loses the human – and at some point believes violence is the only answer.
Idol, hero, rock star
Kirk was a superstar at my school. Many classmates were glowing Maga supporters and saw in him a hero who defended their values. His gymnastics-point-USA rally and his rhetorical fire inspired countless young men. Videos in which he performed “Woke Liberal” continuously.
Of course there were other conservative voices such as Ben Shapiro or Candace Owens. But Kirk created a different kind of energy. His supporters didn’t just want to listen, they wanted to get involved-whether in school courses or group chats. Politics became a social participation event, not an intellectual discussion. It gave them the feeling of being part of something bigger and they felt legitimized to get loud.
Fear after the murder
When Kirk was murdered, I became restless. The hostility to the left is tangible on my campus. Many young people have never understood that Kirk also spoke to dissenters. Instead, it is better to be verted than respectfully.
In football, I learned that a team had to bundle its energy into something larger than its own ego. But my generation consists of two teams who fight against each other instead of bringing the country together. Today, debates are no longer about understanding, but about winning – to expose the opponent. Empathy falls by the wayside.
Grief and new fronts
The weight of Kirk’s death was noticeable in training. Many mourned a man they saw as an idol and future. They looked his speeches, cheered as if he were still there. I also mourned – for his senseless end, but also about the lost chance of unity. Zen Z could rewrite this story if we learn to argue without hatred. But if not, tragedies like this become normal.
My concern: Many young conservatives see a fanal in Kirk’s death, made up of the “anti-woke” fire, which he sparked. Instead of dialogue, I fear more finger, threats, even more split. Even in my high school, political discussions often ended with personal attacks. In college, this is worse because passion paired with the conviction, the other “hate the country”, turns every debate into resentment.
One last glimmer of hope
Nevertheless, I stick to hope. I know from football that teams can also overcome opposites. If we understand this moment as a turning point, we could show that peaceful dialogue is possible. But for that we really have to listen – and see the people behind the conviction.
Eli Thompson is a student in the first year. His articles were published in the “Wall Street Journal” and in “USA Today”, and he was already a guest at NBC Chicago, WGN and Siriusxm Patriot.