Kirk was the co-founder and CEO of Turning Point USA, a non-profit organization that championed conservative politics in high schools and colleges. He was known for debating college students, challenging them on their political and biblical worldview. In doing so, he had a profound impact on young Americans across the nation.
As previously reported by the AP, Kirk was shot while answering a question at an outdoor debate at Utah Valley University. He was at the college for the first leg of “The American Comeback Tour,” where he was to travel and debate across the nation at different college campuses.
President Donald Trump announced Kirk’s death on a Truth Social post, expressing sympathy to his wife, Erika and their children. He also wrote, “No one understood or had the Heart of the Youth in the United States of America better than Charlie.”
David Closson is the director of the Center for Biblical Worldview at Family Research Council (FRC). He spoke with Jody Hice on Washing Watch about what Kirk meant to the youth of America, especially young men.
A different message
“It's so sobering when someone with a public platform passes. This is a political assassination,” said Closson. “This is also someone who is really seen as a role model by millions of young men. I think the hurt experienced in that demographic especially is just visceral.”
Closson believes that the draw to Kirk was because he called young men, who had been talked down to during their lives, to responsibility as they reached adulthood.
“He spoke with clarity, conviction, and courage to a whole kind of cohort that feels adrift,” explains Closson. “He called them to something bigger, something outside of themselves. He called young men to put down the video games and to go build something, to go find meaning.”
Closson recalls a conversation with one of the new interns at FRC, asking “What did Charlie Kirk mean to your generation, to Gen Z?” The 19-year-old responded by saying that Kirk fought for and challenged Gen Z.
“What I appreciated about him is, I think as he got older, that there was actually a maturation and a deepening that took place, in particular, as Charlie Kirk began to really take his faith very seriously and connect his political convictions to his Christian faith,” says Closson.
Furthermore, Closson thinks that young men could see this in Kirk, making them feel like they were being called to a higher standard. He explains that this is important in a culture that demeans men and spews toxic masculinity.
“Charlie Kirk challenged young men to grow up and to do something. He would talk about the fight for civilization, doing something outside of yourself. I think that resonated with young men in just a powerful way,” says Closson.
Last year, the New York Times published an article that explained data from the Survey Center on American Life at the American Enterprise Institute. The findings showed that, for the first time, young men were more religious than young women, as women were 6% more likely to be religiously unaffiliated. Childless young men are also 12% more likely to want to become a parent than a childless young woman.
“I think it shows that, again, young men are hungry to aspire to something outside of themselves, to connect their life to something that has a transcendent meaning,” says Closson.
The influence of Charlie Kirk
He believes that this is, in part, some of Kirk’s influence.
“You would hear him often, whether it was on Fox News or at one of these college events –- he’d look at the young men and tell them, get married, start a family, and start building something. He would connect that to church, building your life in a community that actually believes in absolute moral values,” explains Closson.
In response to the devastating loss, Closson says that it is okay to grieve and lament, especially as Christians. Jesus is the example of weeping at Lazarus’ tomb. However, he says it is important that Christians keep in mind 1 Thessalonians 4.
“We don't grieve as those that don't have hope. We have hope. As Christians, we are rooted in eternal truths. We are rooted in the things that the Bible teaches us. The gospel is still true today as it was (last) Wednesday,” says Closson.
He encourages that, after people, as Christians, grieve for the loss and pray for justice to be carried out, they get back to doing the work that the Lord has called for them.
“We grieve, but then we get back up and fight for truth. We fight for the principles that we find in God's word, that we believe serves civilization, that support families, and that build strong communities. We get back on the horse, and we do the work that God has called us to do.,” states Closson.
He says that the lesson that should be taken from Charlie Kirk is courage. This is a courage that allows people to speak of their convictions to others without compromise.
Closson believes this is seen with the thousands of Turning Point USA charters founded across college campuses or in the fact that young men favored Trump over Kamala Harris in the 2024 election despite the belief that younger generations are more liberal.
“Charlie Kirk has shown that, if you actually make your convictions clear and that you're willing to have a free exchange of ideas, you can change hearts and minds,” says Closson. “You can still connect with people and be filled with rock-ribbed conviction. You don't need this mealy mouth third way-ism. You can speak the truth in love, and people actually are hungry for that.”
