Op-ed views and opinions expressed are solely those of the author.

For years, I have watched and admired Charlie Kirk’s work and passion. From his incredible use of logic and recall of facts, figures and historical texts to his calm demeanor in facing those whose rhetoric was insulting and often inflammatory, he demonstrated what it meant to be a true educator.  Though he had no degree, nor had he ever taught in a school; the world was his classroom.  He created a movement through ideas and celebrated being an American and a Christian, and these ideas and his unwavering courage to espouse them led to his death.

If the coward, whose name I will not mention here, had the courage to look into Charlie’s eyes and debate him, instead of shooting him, I’m sure the debate would have been one-sided, but I’m sure that Charlie would have been respectful and attempted to change the man’s mind with common sense and a civil dialogue.

If Charlie could come back from the grave and give a final interview, what would he have said to the shooter as well as those disturbed individuals who celebrate the taking of his life?  It is my belief that Charlie, who lived with the values of a disciple (a modern day 13^th Apostle) of Jesus and said, “Turn the other cheek” because it was his own life and death and I’m sure he was always aware of the risks that he took each moment he stepped in front of large crowds that were filled with hostile individuals who would choose any means to silence him because they lacked the intellectual ability to silence him through discourse.

However, I also believe that if this was the life of someone else (a Ben Shapiro, Matt Walsh, Michael Knowles or any non-celebrity whom he observed paid the ultimate price) he’d have aptly called out those he believed were responsible, as he did in the senseless killing of Iryna Zarutska when he tweeted the following, “If we want things to change, it’s 100% necessary to politicize the senseless murder of Iryna Zarutska because it was politics that allowed a savage monster with 14 priors to be free on the streets to kill her…” “Based on the information and the evidence we have, the attacker did say, ‘I got that white girl.’ The attacker racialized it in his own telling of the situation. If a random white person on a subway took out a knife and stabbed a black girl senselessly to death, there would be massive media coverage. There would be policy changes. There would be people having to apologize for this. We saw this in George Floyd. And yet for whatever reason, this situation has not garnered even a fraction of that kind of outrage or backlash.”  He described the attack, which the media had covered up for weeks, as one of the “coldest murders he’s ever seen.”  Little did he know his own fate when he made these remarks.

Charlie created an organization, Turning Point USA, and a movement whose goal is proudly displayed on its website: We are committed to identifying, educating, training, and organizing students to promote freedom.  Unlike the talking heads on newscasts or people who own foundations and suck profits from these foundations to support lavish lifestyles, Charlie espoused these ideas by traveling to college campuses and speaking to young people to combat the indoctrination that has taken place in classrooms in so-called institutions of “higher learning.”  He was armed with only his mind and openly welcomed dissenting views under the banner, “Prove me wrong.”  He did this with a civil tone and encouraged those who disagreed with him to an open discourse, and he also encouraged them not to believe what their professors told them, but to seek the truth for themselves.

I never met Charlie, but he greatly inspired me.  As a teacher, I encourage my students to think for themselves.  As a writer, I seek to inspire others through my writing the way Charlie did with his books and speeches.  The news of his murder hit me hard.  I thought of his wife and children and how they will have no more moments with him.  I felt angry and helpless because I could do nothing to change this tragedy.  It was like I had lost a member of my own family.  I went back and watched many of his videos and listened to his courageous wife, Erika’s words to console others, when she is the one who should be consoled.

Many years ago, I began writing a dystopian novel about a place where thinking is against the law.  I drew upon real life experiences to create this fictitious society, Thawtless.  I drew upon stories reported by commentators like Mark Levin, Megyn Kelly, Jesse Watters and of course, Charlie Kirk to write about a world that I hoped America would never become.  I had hoped that one day, I could personally hand each of these people a copy of the book that their views helped inspire me to write.  In the case of Charlie, this won’t happen, so I changed my dedication and dedicated it to his memory and one day, I hope to be able to hand it to Erika.

We live in a world of diverse opinions.  I didn’t agree with everything Charlie said, but I respected his ability to eloquently espouse his beliefs.  It is one thing to disagree or even to agree to disagree, but it is wrong to disrespect.  The claim of fascism is thrown around a lot by people who celebrate the death of Charlie on social media, with their nasty posts or disgusting verbal diatribes, but true fascists are the ones who use bullets to silence their opposition.  Perhaps they would benefit from closing their mouths, opening their eyes and realizing that their exercise of free speech is their right, but speaking freely does have consequences, so when their posts are exposed and they get fired, they should take a good look in their mirrors, if they can even stand the sight of themselves.

Charlie, you will be missed.  You inspired so many people with your words and your actions, and all of us will pick up the torch that was reluctantly passed to us with your passing.  On September 10, 2025, heaven became a better place with your presence in it.

• About
• Latest Posts

Michael Matteo

Michael Matteo is an educator, produced playwright and screenwriter. He has written or co-written 4 books including one of the first jokebooks to make fun of political correctness.He owned a business for 19 years, and has been teaching for over 30 years.Currently he lives and works as head of the humanities department at private, international school in Chengdu, China.

Latest posts by Michael Matteo (see all)

• Assimilate vs accommodate - November 4, 2025
• The ‘tolerant’ left - October 29, 2025
• The publishing industry: Diverse or perverse - October 4, 2025

Comment

We have no tolerance for comments containing violence, racism, profanity, vulgarity, doxing, or discourteous behavior. Thank you for partnering with us to maintain fruitful conversation.