America Didn’t Deserve Charlie Kirk
By The Conservateur Team
Though he had many fans, the only audience that mattered to Charlie Kirk was God. His resume was one that most couldn’t dream of achieving over multiple lifetimes, let alone 31 years. Yet, none of his earthly accolades could hold a candle to the one he undoubtedly has earned now in Heaven: “good and faithful servant.” A juggernaut of civic engagement and a devoted family man, Charlie’s work flowed out from his Christianity. Now that he is gone, a massive vacuum has opened up in the conservative movement. Especially for young Americans feeling lost without him, it’s our obligation to take up Charlie’s mantle.
Charlie took very seriously the arduous task of “keeping the republic,” advocating for virtue and civil discourse in the public square, as Ben Franklin said. He built a sprawling grassroots network that aimed to activate the youth on these issues. Eventually, it would help elect President Trump in 2024. While many blackpilled when our nation was tested, Charlie— sanguine, never cynical— always believed she was worth saving. He actually changed our culture. He encouraged us to take up our destiny. He was the embodiment of a happy warrior, in the spirit of the late Andrew Breitbart and Rush Limbaugh.
He was a multiplier in politics, constantly adding talented people and organizations to the conservative coalition. With that came fruits: friendship and loyalty that his associates— from coast to coast— are all testifying to now.
Every young person in the conservative movement has a Charlie story. He never made this movement about himself, he was always about serving and lifting others. He supported and followed The Conservateur when almost no one did. That’s just the type of man he was; encouraging upstarts when he didn’t have to because it was about the bigger picture.
Even many liberal leaders and personalities are mourning Charlie, because they know we’re at a dangerous precipice. They know he represented the one thing keeping us from civil war. He went to college campuses seeking debate, hoping to find the truth for himself and for others. Though they often wished him harm, he was magnanimous with his intellectual opponents, praying for their conversion rather than their humiliation or downfall.
After a tragedy like this, when such a force of nature with a good heart is snuffed out, a natural question emerges: “why him?” The symbolism of being shot in the throat is unmistakable. Charlie’s speaking had captured a generation, and his killer knew it. Charlie’s gusto for the American project inspired tens of thousands of young adults to enter the fray. We count ourselves among them. A lot of us are now left wondering whether all of it was in vain, because he took the moral high ground and was murdered for it. That political violence is now the norm, and evil won.
But that’s the thing about a martyr; they become twice as powerful when they die. Søren Kierkegaard said, “The tyrant dies and his rule is over, the martyr dies and his rule begins.”
With the generations rising up today, Charlie’s wisdom will continue to reverberate in their lives. Clips of his speeches will be shared forever, carrying more authority than ever before. Charlie was the thought leader of Gen Z. There’s no single person who had a greater impact on young Americans than him. While the popularity of some personalities came and went, Charlie’s endured.
Every young conservative looked up to him because he lived what he preached. His murder for speaking the truth will make new lions out of scores of young people. For them, this was personal.
Many have pointed out in the wake of the assassination, like our friend Allie Beth Stuckey, that hell is undoubtedly rejoicing today. Preacher Charles Spurgeon once said, “Consider how precious a soul must be when both God and the Devil are after it.” Charlie’s voice was a powerful weapon for good, hated by evil. For Charlie, scripture was his oxygen, what breathed life into his daily duties. He believed the Bible with his entire being. He moved with a conviction that only comes from being secure in the Lord and his purpose and salvation in Him.
Among colleagues, he was not known for soaking in the spotlight but for keeping his head down and asking only, “what’s next?” There was no mistaking it: Charlie was gifted. He wasn’t just blessed, he was marked by God. He was wise beyond his years. Charlie earned it all. And as his widow, Erika, expressed: he implores us to earn our future, too.
This year, on September 10, we prayed, we cried, we questioned, we grieved. But now we must fearlessly fight like he did— with a smile. That is how he marched into spiritual battle day in and day out. We will do the same.
