The murder of Charlie Kirk on September 10 while speaking at Utah Valley University stunned the nation and left a hole in the conservative movement that will be felt for years. Kirk was gunned down in front of thousands of students while doing what he did best—standing up for free speech and pushing back against the left’s chokehold on our campuses. This was not an accident of politics; it was an attack on the very idea that Americans can speak and organize without fear.
Turning Point USA’s own Justin Streiff—one of the movement’s chief organizers and fundraisers—stood with other leaders and reminded the country what Charlie built: a grassroots army of young patriots who grew into a force that actually changed outcomes in American politics. Streiff, who serves as TPUSA’s chief development and growth officer, echoed what millions of Americans already know: Charlie combined courage, faith, and relentless hustle to build something that outlived any single speech or headline. Patriots should take comfort in the fact that the people who knew Kirk best say his movement wasn’t a personality cult—it was a carefully built infrastructure of chapters, organizers, and donors.
The aftermath has proved Streiff right: conservative organizing is surging, not folding. Across the country there has been an explosion of interest in starting new Turning Point chapters and getting young people involved in politics the right way—by winning hearts and minds on campus and insisting on common-sense, American-first policies. This rebound isn’t accidental; it’s the predictable, righteous response of citizens who refuse to be intimidated by political violence or by a hostile corporate media that would rather mourn with the left than stand up for free speech.
The memorials and gatherings honoring Charlie have been massive and deeply moving, drawing tens of thousands who saw in him not a provocateur but a mentor and a brother in the fight for America’s future. When leaders from the White House to grassroots chapters showed up to remember him, it made clear that his life was about building a future for young Americans grounded in faith, family, and liberty. Those crowds were not a festival of nostalgia—they were a demonstration that conservative ideas still win when they are fought for with conviction.
Let us be clear: this moment is both grief and a call to action. The left’s culture of demonization stokes danger; it’s time for policymakers and law enforcement to stop treating political violence as normal and start treating it as the national crisis it is. Conservatives must demand accountability, defend our leaders on campus, and make sure the next generation of activists is trained, protected, and politically effective. There is no honor in retreat.
Turning Point USA has already moved to preserve Charlie’s legacy, and his widow Erika has been entrusted with carrying the torch forward—an outcome the organization’s leaders say honors Charlie’s vision and the work he poured his life into. This is not a moment for factionalism or infighting; it is a moment to double down on outreach, on winning debates in classrooms, on recruiting leaders who will advance conservative principles with the same fearless faith Charlie modeled. The movement he built was bigger than one man, and now it is our job to make sure it keeps changing the world in defense of America.
So to every hardworking American who loved this country: mourn, pray, and then mobilize. Turn grief into action—open chapters, register voters, mentor students, and teach them how to debate with dignity and win with truth. Charlie Kirk taught a generation to stand up; now that generation must stand even taller, refuse to be cowed, and finish the work he began.
