Shock reverberated through campus Wednesday afternoon as news of conservative activist Charlie Kirk’s assassination spread, with student leaders from across the aisle promptly condemning the political violence.
In the immediate aftermath of Kirk’s fatal shooting at Utah Valley University, students relentlessly refreshed their screens for live updates, rushed to group chats midlecture and flooded social media with posts denouncing gun violence. Student leaders across the political spectrum released statements lamenting the killing of the conservative activist, while GW College Republicans canceled their speaker event slated for Wednesday night and University President Ellen Granberg began an event by condemning the “really horrific act” of political violence.
“As the university with the most politically engaged student body in the country, there are a lot of students here tonight who are very worried, who are very scared,” Granberg told the audience at a prescheduled School of Business event. “I just want to ask you to hold in your minds the Kirk family and our student body.”
Students flocked to Instagram, posting stories condemning an uptick in U.S. political violence and expressing sorrow and grief over the death of Kirk — a conservative activist who founded Turning Point USA, a nonprofit organization that promotes right-leaning political values on high school and college campuses. While some students reposted partisan opinions spotlighting Kirk’s former comments opposing gun control, student leaders at the helm of GW’s political organizations called on students across the political aisle to support each other in the wake of the assassination.
“This moment is a wake-up call for all of us,” said GW College Republicans Chairman Kieran Laffey in an Instagram statement. “Political violence is rising and together we must confront it with clarity and courage.”
College Republicans had planned to host an event with Texan Congressman Brandon Gill at the University Student Center Wednesday night, but canceled the talk in wake of the assassination. Gill’s office did not immediately return a request for comment on whether he canceled the event due to security concerns.
Laffey said he and members of College Republicans met with Granberg and Dean of Students Collette Coleman to discuss the implications of the shooting, and said the officials demonstrated a commitment to keeping students safe.
“While we may differ in our political views, violence is never the answer — and must never be tolerated,” College Republicans wrote in a separate statement condemning the assassination and sharing that they met with officials.
Laffey said Kirk’s political movement was grounded in “conviction, faith and open dialogue,” not political violence. He said Kirk set a personal example for him and other young conservatives, showing him what it meant to “speak boldly and faithfully” for his beliefs.
“What makes this tragedy even more unbearable is that Charlie built his entire platform on modeling civil political discourse,” Laffey’s post read. “He reached across political divides, always choosing speech over violence as the way to confront and resolve America’s toughest issues. To see his life ended is more than crushing.”
Laffey said he has seen a “flood of cruel comments” from GW community members celebrating Kirk’s death, which he labeled “senseless and horrifying.” He said the country is facing a “moral crisis deeper than what anyone thought” if American’s response to political discourse is violence.
Emily-Anne Santiago, the president of GW College Democrats, said she was shocked by the news. She said acts of political violence are becoming more normalized in the U.S., pointing to the assassination of a Minnesota politician and her husband in June.
“It seems more and more like it’s becoming normalized on both sides, for Republicans and Democrats to get their legislators shot,” Santiago said.
Santiago said she offered emotional and logistical support — including help cancelling and rescheduling events — to GW College Republicans’ executive board because both groups maintain a mutual respect for each other. GW College Democrats said in a statement on Instagram they were “horrified” by the shooting, calling on the community at large to reject gun violence.
“You can disagree with the man, but today’s act goes against the very core of our nation, and I think most people would agree with that,” Santiago said.
Santiago said College Democrats, College Republicans and Young Americans for Freedom will cohost an event on Monday to discuss the assassination with the Center for Interfaith and Spiritual Life and Counseling and Psychological Services.
Santiago also said she met with Coleman in the wake of the news to discuss safety concerns over future campus events with political officials, including the organization’s upcoming conversation with Aaron Parnas, a political content creator, at the end of the month. Unlike the College Republicans’ meeting, Santiago said Granberg was not present.
Student Government Association President Ethan Lynne and SGA Vice President Liz Stoddard issued a joint statement on Instagram condemning “any form of violence” and calling for “respectful discourse, disagreement and debate” on campus.
“Every person is entitled to basic human dignity, and there is no debate, disagreement or discourse that should ever be settled with violence,” the statement read.
Jipson Zhang, the chairman of YAF, an organization focused primarily on conservative thinking, said in a message that the group is “deeply horrified” by Kirk’s assassination. They said the organization hopes to see political violence against any individual or group eradicated from American politics.
Zhang said YAF and GW’s conservative community will not be intimidated by the “blatant assault” on free speech that Wednesday’s assassination represents. He also called on local and federal law enforcement to apprehend Kirk’s assassin — who authorities have not identified or apprehend as of Thursday morning — and bring justice to Kirk’s family.
“Let us be clear: this heinous act of political violence that we saw will not deter Young Americans for Freedom at GWU from advancing the conservative cause or from educating our peers on the principles and virtues of conservatism,” Zhang said in a text message.
GW Democracy Matters, a nonpartisan student organization that advocates for representative democracy, posted a statement to its Instagram account calling political attacks a “near-monthly occurrence” in the U.S. The statement said each act of violence “casts a shadow” over American democracy and threatens to “upend” values that keep the country together.
“Though he may have been a divisive figure, violence is never the way to advance political goals or intentions,” the statement read.
In interviews with The Hatchet, roughly 10 students said despite disagreeing with Kirk politically, they were saddened by the blatant act of political violence.
Maria Hanks, a sophomore majoring in international affairs, said she and her friends are still “flabbergasted and surprised” by Kirk’s assassination, given his prominent role in conservative politics and pop culture as a whole.
“I think political violence in almost all cases is a horrible thing, even though I think that Charlie Kirk was quite a vile human being,” Hanks said.
Qasim Panjwani, a sophomore studying international business, said he’s sad that a human is dead at the hands of gun violence, but he wasn’t “devastated” by Kirk’s death.
He said he believes the assassination and ensuing media cycle could fuel political polarization and he’s already seeing divisions form as people respond differently to Kirk’s death across the nation, including on GW’s campus.
“People’s opinions on Charlie Kirk, people’s opinions on gun control, people’s opinions on school shootings, people’s opinions on Trump as a whole is definitely going to be more divisive now that there’s a large story that everyone’s talking about,” Panjwani said.
Ravi Padmanabhan, a first-year majoring in history, said while he disagrees with Kirk’s politics, the videos circulating online of the moment he was shot were “disgusting.” He said it’s salient to acknowledge the effects Wednesday’s events will have on American politics, including a likely increase in political violence.
Padmanabhan said Americans must recognize the current state of politics, where some people are feeling “so desperate” that their only option is violence.
“I think it is just important to acknowledge that we are in a dangerous place, and if we do not come together to understand, this will only get worse,” Padmanabhan said.
Arjun Srinivas and Gianna Jakubowski contributed reporting.
