At the memorial for Charlie Kirk, free speech was at the center of speakers’ praise for Kirk and aspirations for the future.
Mrs. Erika Kirk, President Donald Trump, Vice President JD Vance, Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard all emphasized free speech in their eulogies for Turning Point USA Founder Charlie Kirk on Sunday. Mrs. Kirk promised to continue her husband’s free speech legacy and described him as a victim to anti-First Amendment violence. Even X owner Elon Musk attended the memorial in Arizona and told Norwegian news outlet Verdens Gang, Kirk “was killed because his words made a difference, because he was showing people the light, and he was killed by the dark.”
As part of her inspiring speech honoring her late husband, Erika Kirk, now TPUSA CEO, declared, “And yes, campus events will continue, and we will continue to hold debates and dialogue.” She emphasized, “The First Amendment of our Constitution is the most human amendment. We are naturally talking beings, naturally believing beings, and the First Amendment protects our right to do both. No assassin will ever stop us from standing up to defend those rights, ever. Because when you stop the conversation, when you stop the dialogue, this is what happens.”
.@MrsErikaKirk: "And yes, campus events will continue. And we will continue to hold debates and dialogue. The First Amendment of our Constitution is the most human amendment. We are naturally talking beings. Naturally and believing beings. And the First Amendment protects our… pic.twitter.com/XOUgs3cEaz
— Curtis Houck (@CurtisHouck) September 21, 2025
Trump followed Mrs. Kirk and described Kirk’s legacy of combating Big Tech censorship. “It was Charlie who helped bring online censorship, free speech and cancel culture to the fore of our political debate,” the president lauded the late TPUSA founder.
Vice President Vance, like Mrs. Kirk, framed the assassination as a form of censorship, saying that while the shooter and his allies “tried to silence our dear friend Charlie Kirk, we speak with Charlie and for Charlie louder than ever.”
Trump’s Health and Human Services Secretary Kennedy also spoke about his friend Kirk, saying, “The overarching mission of Charlie Kirk was Jesus and also free speech, and he saw them as intertwined.” Describing Kirk’s vision, he noted, “We had to be able to say what we mean without being mean.” Kennedy argued Kirk’s approach is “the only way to end the polarization now that’s driven by these algorithms and by all these other forces in our society.
In his first conversation with Kirk, Kennedy recalled, he and Kirk discussed how “our Founders put freedom of speech in the First Amendment, because all the other rights are dependent on it. A government that can silence its opponents has license for any kind of atrocity.” They particularly discussed the COVID-19 pandemic and the Big Tech-government censorship collusion effort, revealed in the Twitter Files.
Charlie Kirk gave his life so that the rest of us would not have to suffer fates worse than death.
— Secretary Kennedy (@SecKennedy) September 15, 2025
Now it’s our job, since he’s no longer there to lead us, to rush in and fill the breach, and win this battle for Country, for God and for our families. pic.twitter.com/J6WDuialHP
Kennedy credited Kirk most of all with having “led the resistance that has restored freedom of speech in this country.” And referring to the government censorship effort and erosion of constitutional rights during the COVID-19 pandemic, Kennedy added, “[Kirk] built this movement, [] which is going to make sure that never ever happens again.” The Secretary described Kirk’s death as a sacrifice to protect America against “fates worse than death,” the loss of constitutional rights.
DNI Gabbard likewise praised Kirk’s dedication to the Constitution, stating, “Charlie lived what our Founders envisioned: freedom. The right to speak even when we disagree,” the idea that despite disagreement “I will fight to defend to the death… your right to speak.” Gabbard continued, “Free speech is the foundation of our democratic republic, we must protect it at all costs, because without it, we’ll be lost. Charlie knew this. He lived it.”
Free speech is under attack! Contact your representatives and demand that Big Tech be held to account to mirror the First Amendment while providing transparency, clarity on hate speech and equal footing for conservatives. If you have been censored, contact us using CensorTrack’s contact form, and help us hold Big Tech accountable.
