Charlie Kirk’s legacy remembered in unexpected tributes on social media

Following the Sept. 10 assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk, Americans took to X to condemn his death, with some condolences coming from unexpected sources.

Detransitioners expressed their gratitude for Kirk’s activism and respectful debating style, with one woman crediting him for helping to lead her back to her true sex. 

Leaders from across the political spectrum condemned violence and announced their prayers for Kirk’s wife, Erika, and their two children. California Gov. Gavin Newsom, a Democrat, also took to social media to support Kirk, who had made an appearance on Newsom’s podcast “This is Gavin Newsom” in March.

Former President Barack Obama expressed his condolences to Kirk’s family as well, adding in his X post that “this kind of despicable violence has no place in our democracy.” 

In a message posted on X, detransitioner Maia Poet remembered Kirk for his work, saying that he “gave detransitioners a national platform when no one else would.”

“You treated every single young trans identifying person you debated with the utmost respect— even as wokists in the audience harassed you,” she continued, adding that she saw his videos while adhering to trans and leftist ideologies.

“It was your compassionate approach that made me realize that there were good people on the other side. It was your approach that made me realize just how much the woke left had lied to me,” she wrote. “I ditched transgenderism and wokeness in large part due to the efforts of your movement, and your compassion alongside personal factors.”

Poet thanked Kirk “for everything you’ve done for our great country, for young people and for families” and asked followers to share her post, saying that she wants Kirk’s family to know how many lives he changed for the better. She also shared that Kirk’s movement, Turning Point USA, gave her and other detransitioners a platform to share their stories.

I am so grateful to have benefitted from his work,” she wrote. “I hope his family knows just how many lives Charlie Kirk’s legacy has impacted.”

Detransitioner Prisha Mosley also took to X to commemorate Kirk, reposting a clip from an interview she did on “The Charlie Kirk Show” in 2023.

“Thank you for listening to me. Thank you for helping me fight for justice. Thank you for standing up for girls like I was,” she posted.

In the comments under her post, she remembered Kirk as a “wonderful human” filled with compassion who “really cared about other people.”

In Connecticut, young people from across the political spectrum issued a joint statement offering prayers for Kirk and his family.

“There is no place in our country for such acts, regardless of political disagreements. We are praying for Charlie Kirk, his family, and all those at Utah Valley University impacted by this horrible act as the community processes and recovers,” the statement read, signed by the Young Democrats of Connecticut and Connecticut Young Republicans.

Chandler Crump, a 20-year-old conservative commentator, shared on X that “Charlie Kirk changed my life.” 

“I attended Turning Point USA’s Young Black Leadership Summit in October 2018. I was 14 at the time but Charlie told me it didn’t matter how young I was, I could fight alongside him in this movement,” he wrote.

He also credited Kirk and Turning Point USA with shaping him into the person he is today.

Crump added, “I will never be the same without him, and this country will never be the same either.”