For Suffolk senior Anthony Cutler, conservative activist Charlie Kirk has long been an inspiration.

“I think he embodied a fearlessness,” said Cutler, who is the president of Suffolk’s chapter of Turning Point USA, a conservative political organization Kirk founded in 2012. “He was known for going places where his opinion was unpopular which takes a courage that not many people have, so I have to commend him for that and it’s something that has always resonated with me.”

Cutler first became interested in Turning Point USA while he was in high school in 2021. When he learned of Suffolk’s chapter at the start of his freshman year, it quickly became somewhere where he, and his political views, felt at home.

“Turning Point USA and Charlie Kirk I believe helped embolden these ideas for me, they really made me more confident,” said Cutler, who met Kirk several times at Turning Point conferences.

On Sept. 10, a 22-year-old Utah man assassinated Kirk while he was speaking to a crowd at Utah Valley University as part of a national tour for Turning Point USA, a tragedy Cutler described as “shocking and disheartening.”

Kirk was a divisive figure, and the latest victim of rising acts of political violence. At 31-years-old, Kirk mobilized young conservatives for over a decade, becoming a lightning rod for Gen Z conservative activism. He campaigned heavily for President Donald Trump, contributing to get-out-the-vote efforts for the Republican party while also routinely going toe-to-toe with young liberals on college campuses nationwide.

For the last 13 years of Kirk’s rising political influence, his critics pointed to statements by and beliefs of Kirk as harmful to marginalized groups. Kirk routinely fired verbal attacks at LGBTQ+ rights, avidly supported gun ownership and stated gun deaths were “worth the cost of” protecting the Second Amendment, and opposed diversity, equity and inclusion and called the Civil Rights Act of 1964 a “mistake,” according to the New York Times. 

The impact of Kirk’s rhetoric, which was widely shared online, was felt by many people who identify with the groups he targeted.

“As a gay kid growing up in a super rural town, his type of rhetoric didn’t make me feel safe, and if anything, it emboldened a lot of the bullying and things that I faced growing up,” said Joey Pisani, a Suffolk sophomore.

For both Pisani and Cutler, Kirk’s assasination highlighted concerning trends rising in the United States. To Cutler, it’s a direct threat to freedom of speech and expression. For Pisani, the events of Sept. 10 were yet another that call for gun control.

“In this conversation where people are feeling that fear, are feeling unsafe, I would hope that people take the moment to think about what would take that fear away,” said Pisani. “What could create a world and a place where kids don’t have to grow up hiding under desks and doing drills? I don’t think we’re going to see that for a long time and this is what it boils down to. I certainly think we should always be investing in mental health [services] but at the end of the day, what boils down to this issue: it is the guns.”

Immediately following the shooting, reactions across the nation were largely split – President Trump ordered all flags be flown at half-staff nationwide and his followers grieved. On the left, debates on empathy – and its limits – erupted on social media and beyond in light of his stances on gun access.

“Let me start off by saying, no one and I mean not a single damn person should be shot for using their first amendment right,” said Fayth Cordeiro, also a sophomore at Suffolk. “It was not the use of the First Amendment right that killed Charlie Kirk, it was the second.”

The hurt caused by Kirk and his rhetoric, said Pisani, does not disappear in light of the tragedy.

“I will never blame or be upset with somebody for not mourning, especially those who are in marginalized communities who felt deeply affected, deeply hurt and deeply unsafe by the rhetoric that he used and that he stirred up across the country, particularly within our generation,” said Pisani.

The future of Turning Point USA after the loss seems uncertain to Cutler. Due to Kirk’s young age, Turning Point was not prepared for his passing. Though it is unknown what the future of the organization holds, Cutler believes the organization will continue, even if it looks different under new leadership. 

“Charlie was Turning Point USA. I see Charlie as someone who was irreplaceable,” Cutler said.

As Cutler grapples with and grieves the loss, he remains dedicated to his beliefs and being an advocate for them, driven by Kirk’s memory and example.

“I know that Charlie Kirk would not want anyone to back down,” said Cutler. “It goes back to that fearlessness – he would want us to be out there and fighting for the cause.”