Charlie Kirk’s widow, Erika Kirk, moved mourners during her husband’s memorial service in Glendale, Arizona, on Sunday, September 21, with a message of forgiveness for his alleged killer.
Erika, a mother of two, vowed to continue Charlie’s work as the leader of Turning Point USA. She told the crowd her choice to forgive 22-year-old Tyler Robinson, the man accused of fatally shooting her husband, was rooted in faith.
“My husband wanted to save young men just like the one who took his life,” she said. “I forgive him because it was what Christ did, and it is what Charlie would do.”
Kirk was shot on September 10 at Utah Valley University during a campus debate. Prosecutors said Robinson sent texts before and after the attack, claiming he was tired of Kirk’s “hatred.” He faces a murder charge and could receive the death penalty if convicted.
Asked about the punishment, Erika said she would leave the decision to the justice system. “I do not want that man’s blood on my ledger,” she said.
Erika also described the pain of seeing her husband’s body at the hospital after the shooting. “I felt horror and a level of heartache I didn’t know existed,” she said. She took comfort in what looked like a faint smile on his lips, believing he did not suffer.
She thanked the public for their support and urged the nation to respond to violence with compassion. “The answer to hate is not hate,” she said. “The answer is love—love for our enemies and those who persecute us.”
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