It’s been one year since Charlie Kirk was shot and killed on a college campus in Utah. That was one of many acts of politically motivated violence that have taken place in this country.
But has the temperature turned down since the killing of a man who marketed his willingness to open a dialogue with opposing viewpoints? That depends on how one would measure political violence.
“In the last year, we’re seeing the problem certainly has continued,” Pete Simi, professor of sociology at Chapman University, told Straight Arrow.
The year that was
Kirk’s assassination was the last since then, but that doesn’t mean tempers have cooled.
The most violent instance of political violence since Kirk’s killing came in April at the White House Correspondents’ dinner in Washington, D.C. A man barged into the building and opened fire, injuring a Secret Service agent.
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Cole Allen is believed to have intended to kill President Donald Trump.
Meanwhile, some see the immigration agents’ killings of two civilians in Minnesota as a form of political violence.
“In many respects the problem’s a lot worse over the last year when you look at it through that lens and broaden it a little bit beyond just non-state actors,” Simi said.
The most recent incident came just days ago when an armed man charged at Amy Acton, a Democratic candidate for Ohio governor.
Kirk’s shooting appeared to also have a direct effect on these incidents. Researchers found threats against local officials spiked after the murder.
At this point, data on political violence and total threats for this year are limited.
Why?
Political violence is far from new in this country. Between the whiskey rebellion of the late 1700s, four U.S. presidents being assassinated, and the recent murder of a Minnesota state lawmaker, it’s a relatively solemn par for the course.
“It’s a longstanding problem in our country’s history, so it’s nothing new,” Simi said.
As for more recent times, civility in American politics has gotten extremely low, with many Americans considering the level of civility a problem.
Some of that comes from the current leader of the country. Simi said Trump has repeatedly fanned the flames, including inciting the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol insurrection and threatening sitting members of Congress with death.
“We have a political leader in the White House, the president of the United States, whose track record when it comes to political violence is abysmal, and frankly, has a long record of promoting political violence, and has done that since the first time he ran for president, beginning back in 2015,” Simi said.
Even following Kirk’s death, Trump said “we have to beat the hell” out of “radical left lunatics.”
Right-wing commentator Laura Loomer called for “cracking down on the Left with the full force of the government,” while Fox News host Jesse Watters said they “are at war with us.”
All of this does come after a right-wing commentator was murdered. While there were plenty of people rejoicing over Kirk’s death, no Democratic politician or influential commentator was on record calling for his death before it happened.
Kirk’s alleged assassin is 23-year-old Tyler Robinson. The FBI says one of the bullets found had the words, “Hey fascist! Catch,” and another had lyrics from the song “Bella Ciao.”
Both are clear anti-fascist remarks and could provide insight into the political violence against Kirk if Robinson is convicted.
What’s next?
Up next are the midterm elections. Simi believes there’s reason to be concerned about future elections and potential political violence.
“Anyone with an ounce of realism would have to say ‘yes’ to that question,” he said. “I think there’s major concerns on the horizon that we need to be vigilant about.”
There are significant concerns from people of both parties about voter intimidation or being confronted while voting.
As another election approaches, Simi says it’s important for current and possible future elected leaders to turn down the temperature.
“Some of this is very difficult to address when you’ve got elected officials at the highest levels who are instigating things and promoting things that are really destabilizing our system of governance,” he said.
As far as the assassination of Kirk, Robinson will stand trial. His next court date is set for Oct. 23.
He faces numerous charges, including aggravated murder. A conviction on that charge makes him eligible for the death penalty.
