New Delhi: A statue of Charlie Kirk, inaugurated on Thursday to mark the first anniversary of his death, was defaced with red paint.
The chief operating officer of Turning Point Action, the youth-focused political organisation founded by Kirk, confirmed the incident on X.
“This morning we woke up to radical criminals vandalising our headquarters,” Tyler Bowyer wrote on X. He posted photos of the statue and a separate sign that had also been spray-painted.
Charlie Kirk’s assassination
Last year, on 10 September, Kirk, an American right-wing political activist, was shot dead while speaking at a debate at Utah Valley University in Utah. The event was organised by Turning Point.
Kirk was known as an ally of the Trump administration and a proponent of Trump’s “Make America Great Again” movement.
Installed in Phoenix, outside Turning Point USA headquarters, the statue was a memorial to Kirk. It was later vandalised and defaced with red paint.
Police also confirmed receiving calls about the vandalism on Sunday morning. They asked anyone with relevant information to report the incident.
Kirk’s activism and work have left many divided in the country.
While he was criticised for his racist, anti-immigrant, transphobic and misogynistic remarks, his supporters saw him as a defender of conservative values.
Tyler Robinson, who is accused of killing Kirk, has not yet pleaded guilty. He could face the death penalty if convicted.
Also Read: Some hate can’t be negotiated’: Read the text messages Charlie Kirk murder suspect sent his partner
Kirk’s widow, Erika, posted on X that his statue would be cleaned and restored.
“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 wrote, adding that neither she nor Kirk’s supporters would give up or surrender.
As of September 14, the statue has been cleaned and restored to its previous state, according to pictures posted by Tyler Bowyer on X. “After a little elbow grease from the team, we are back. Hate won’t win.”, Bowyer wrote.
Edited by Maryam Hassan