THE wife of conservative activist Charlie Kirk has relived the horrific moment she learned her husband was assassinated.
Former pageant queen Erika Kirk, 36, said that she was sitting in the hospital beside her mother when she learned she was going to be a widow.
Charlie Kirk’s wife Erika revealed the moment she learned her husband had been assassinated[/caption]
Erika broke down in tears in a speech given at her husband’s memorial on Sunday[/caption]
She was comforted by Second Lady Usha Vance soon after the shooting[/caption]
The mom of two was staying at their home in Phoenix, Arizona while Kirk chatted with students at Utah Valley University when he was shot in the neck by a single bullet.
She was by her mom’s side as she received medical treatment when she got a message from Kirk’s longtime assistant Michael McCoy at 11:23 am.
“He’s been shot!” read the message that changed Erika’s life forever, she told the New York Times.
Erika rushed to board a plane to Utah, but her husband was pronounced dead while she was in the air.
Remembering the moments after getting the horrific news, Erika said, “I’m looking at the clouds and the mountains.
“It was such a gorgeous day, and I was thinking: This is exactly what he last saw.”
When Erika got to the hospital, the sheriff warned her that the bullet had wrecked her husband’s neck, but she insisted on seeing the body.
“With all due respect, I want to see what they did to my husband,” Erika remembers saying.
The widow described Kirk’s body saying that his eyes were left sleepily half open, and that he appeared to have a smile on his face.
She said it was almost as if “he’d died happy.”
“Like Jesus rescued him. The bullet came, he blinked, and he was in heaven.”
Erika said that she then kissed her husband for the final time and said her goodbyes.
HORROR SHOOTING
Over 30 hours after Kirk was killed, Utah native Tyler Robinson, 22, was arrested and accused of committing the sick act.
In text messages reportedly sent by Robinson after the shooting, the suspect said, “I’ve had enough of his hatred,” according to court documents.
Kirk attracted staunch followers and vitriolic critics through his activism, where he shared controversial opinions on feminism, LGBT+ issues, and foreign policy.
Erika said that, soon before the shooting, she told her husband she was worried for his safety, as he’d received multiple death threats.
She and a friend suggested he wear a bulletproof vest or sit behind bulletproof glass when he sat outdoors and hosted Q&A sessions with students.
However, Kirk said he felt confident with his security team that traveled around with him everywhere.
I was at the Charlie Kirk memorial
There wasn’t a dry eye in the stadium when Charlie’s widow Erika spoke about her love for the husband she lost.
We had already been confronted with a picture of her and Charlie at the doors of the stadium but hearing her speak made it hit home.
Seeing his family up on stage – who have been cruelly robbed of a husband and a father – brought a tear to the crowd’s eye.
One lady said being a part of it was special as she got to witness how loved Charlie was. The mood shifted from defiance when JD Vance was speaking to one of tenderness and sadness.
Those who were cheering at other speeches and chanting ‘USA’ fell silent when Erika spoke.
A hush fell when Trump came on stage. His speech is more personal than most presidential speeches revealing how close the pair really were. Aides say he had a lot of input in writing the speech.
‘I FORGIVE HIM’
In a heartwrenching speech, Erika, who is now the CEO of Kirk’s organization Turning Point USA, admitted that she had forgiven her husband’s killer.
“I forgive him because it was what Christ did. And is what Charlie would do,” she told a crowd of 100,000 people who gathered to mourn the activist.
“The answer to hate is not hate, the answer we know from the gospel is love and always love.
“After Charlie’s assassination, we didn’t see violence, we didn’t see rioting, we didn’t see revolution.
“Instead, we saw what my husband always prayed he would see in this country. We saw revival [of Christian faith].”
Charlie Kirk’s rise to hero of the youth MAGA movement
CHARLIE Kirk transformed conservative youth activism from a marginal movement into a powerful force before his assassination on a college campus at 31.
Kirk was an American conservative political activist, author, and media personality who rose to prominence as the co-founder of Turning Point USA (TPUSA).
He launched the organization in 2012 when he was just 18 years old, with the goal of promoting conservative principles to high school and college students and became a significant figure in American politics by building a massive grassroots network, framing himself as a “culture warrior.”
The rise of Turning Point USA
Turning Point USA’s mission was to counter what Kirk and his allies saw as liberal dominance on American college campuses.
It quickly grew to prominence through his use of provocative activism and viral social media campaigns.
They created watchlists of professors pushing leftist propaganda and organized events to debate students on controversial topics.
The strategy helped them gain a significant following and financial backing from wealthy conservative donors.
Kirk’s ability to connect with a new generation of conservatives was one of his most notable impacts.
He cultivated a style of political engagement that was heavily reliant on social media, podcasts, and confrontational public appearances.
His organization’s events, such as the annual Student Action Summit, drew thousands of young attendees and featured prominent conservative speakers, creating a new kind of political ecosystem for young people who felt alienated from traditional conservative groups.
A key ally of Donald Trump
Kirk also became a staunch supporter and ally of President Donald Trump.
He was the youngest speaker at the 2016 Republican National Convention and served as an aide to Donald Trump Jr. during the presidential campaign.
This relationship solidified his position within the Republican Party’s “MAGA” (Make America Great Again) wing, and his organization became an integral part of Trump’s political apparatus.
Through his popular podcast, “The Charlie Kirk Show,” and his frequent appearances on conservative media, Kirk was a powerful voice in the pro-Trump movement.
He often framed political issues as a “spiritual battle” between good and evil and championed a pugnacious, populist form of conservatism.
His influence was so significant that after Trump’s 2024 victory, Kirk was credited with helping to mobilize younger voters for the campaign.
Influence on culture and social issues
Beyond traditional politics, Kirk’s influence extended deeply into social and cultural issues.
He was a vocal opponent of “woke” ideology, particularly in education and media.
He promoted traditional values, often encouraging young women to prioritize becoming homemakers and mothers over professional careers.
Kirk also openly criticized programs related to diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI).
He was also a major proponent of Christian nationalism, arguing that there is no true separation of church and state in the United States.
The Turning Point Empire
Kirk’s activism led to the expansion of the Turning Point brand into a larger political and media empire.
He launched Turning Point Action, a political advocacy group focused on voter mobilization, and Turning Point Faith, aimed at engaging evangelical Christian communities in conservative politics.
These affiliated organizations allowed him to broaden his reach and influence beyond college campuses, into a more mainstream political force.
