Conservative influencer Charlie Kirk, the founder of Turning Point USA with a chapter at Kent State University, died after being shot in the neck during an event at Utah Valley University on Sept. 10, President Donald Trump confirmed.
Kirk was scheduled to be the keynote speaker at the Center for Christian Virtue’s Cleveland Celebration Gala being held Sept. 26.
Kirk co-founded the nonprofit group for young people in 2012. It now has about 800 college chapters.
A look back at Turning Point at Kent State
The Kent State chapter posted to its Instagram a statement by the national Turning Point account.
“It is with a heavy heart that we confirm that Charles James Kirk has been murdered by a gunshot that took place during Turning Point USA’s ‘The American Comeback Tour’ campus event at Utah Valley University on September 10, 2025. … We ask that everyone keep his family and loved ones in your prayers. We ask that you please respect their privacy and dignity at this time.”
The Kent State chapter brought Kyle Rittenhouse to campus in April 2024 to talk about gun rights and the night he shot and killed two people in 2020 in Kenosha, Wisconsin. Hundreds of protesters lined the streets and sidewalks outside Kent’s student center in opposition to his presence.While he argued that students should be allowed to carry guns into classrooms, some protesters said guns had no place on college campuses.
KSU graduate Kaitlin Bennett, who gained notoriety nationwide in 2018 for carrying an AR-10 rifle across campus, was a former chapter president.
Bennett posted on X, thanking Kirk for giving her first job.
“I am just completely speechless right now and trying to stay off social media. Thank you Charlie for giving me my first job in politics 8 years ago and helping me find my voice and my passion. You were taken from us way too young and my heart breaks for your wife and kids.”
However, Bennett, Kirk and Turning Point had a fallout after a diaper-wearing student participated in an “anti-safe space” stunt at Kent State in October 2017, according to The Independent.
Turning Point was widely mocked by liberal commenters on social media because of the student, who was attempting to compare marginalized groups seeking safe spaces or protected areas on campus with babies.
Bennett resigned and contended that Kirk was upset because Turning Point’s national donors were angry about the stunt, she told Rebel News podcasters in February 2022.
“They disavowed me … then Charlie basically threw me under the bus,” Bennett said.
This story has been updated with additional information.
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: A look back at Turning Point’s Kent chapter after Charlie Kirk’s death
Reporting by Alisson Toro-Lagos, Akron Beacon Journal / Akron Beacon Journal
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