Vandals spray-painted what appeared to be messages mocking Charlie Kirk’s death only days after a new statue was unveiled at Turning Point USA headquarters in Phoenix, Arizona.
The statue memorializes the conservative activist a year after he was shot and killed at Utah Valley University. Police were notified on Sunday about red spray paint mimicking the lethal wound Kirk suffered.
“It was horrifying,” said Tyler Bowyer, chief operating officer of TPUSA. “It was clear that vandals came here, spray-painted what looked like blood, or what was intended to look like blood, both on the sign right there and on the statue.”
TPUSA shared images showing a red “X” spray-painted over Kirk’s face. The organization labeled the act “diabolical,” noting the name of Jesus Christ was also painted over.
Andrew Kolvet, TPUSA spokesman and executive producer of “The Charlie Kirk Show,” stated the group will not be deterred: “We will find the people responsible, and they will be held accountable. Americans of good faith, which is the vast, vast majority of Americans, are sick of this type of ugliness.”
Kolvet added: “Demons don’t sleep, so we will just have to sleep less. We won’t be cowed. We won’t stop. Every vile act only makes us more determined and only energizes more people to get off the sidelines and fight harder.”
Charlie Kirk’s widow, Erika Kirk, released a statement: “Charlie once said we should be building two statues for every statue that they tear down. His instinct was always to build, not to destroy. They thought a bullet would silence my husband’s voice but it only made it louder. They think spray paint can obscure his legacy, but it will only spread it further. Every attempt to tear down what Charlie built makes us root deeper and work even harder.”
She concluded: “We will never give up and never surrender.”
