A series of monumental speeches were given at Charlie Kirk’s memorial in Glendale, Arizona, on Saturday.
Between 100,000 and 300,000 supporters packed State Farm Stadium, Desert Diamond Arena, and the streets in between to honor Kirk’s life.
Kirk was murdered on September 10 during a college tour stop in Utah.
‘Kindness, courage, and a commitment to open debate.’
The event, titled “Building a Legacy: Remembering Charlie Kirk,” lasted over five hours and featured speeches from Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-Fla.), and Kirk’s widow, Erika Kirk.
Before Kirk’s wife took the stage, however, other members of the Trump administration gave powerful speeches that were not only kind and heartfelt but encouraging and motivational.
Vice President JD Vance told the audience in Arizona that it was “from this desert Charlie Kirk built a movement,” referring to Turning Point USA. He encouraged the organization, and the movement it represents, to keep growing and moving forward.
“Charlie brought the truth,” Vance continued, energizing the audience. He explained that Kirk believed young people deserve a voice and a future worth fighting for. This includes a guarantee that America’s government provide safe neighborhoods and prosperity to its people, Vance went on.
RELATED: ‘I forgive him’: Erika Kirk’s powerful message to Charlie’s alleged assassin
The vice president said he admired Kirk’s “kindness, courage, and a commitment to open debate,” which he described as a vehicle for “bringing the light of truth to dark places.”
Similarly, HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said that one of Kirk’s greatest qualities was that he “always gave the biggest microphone to the people who were most passionately aligned against him.”
Kennedy sat with his wife, Cheryl Hines, in the audience as the two listened attentively to others speak until it was the secretary’s turn.
“[Charlie] thought that conversation was the only way to heal our country. And this was particularly important during a technological age, when we are all hooked into social algorithms that … amplify our impulses for tribalism and for division. He felt that the only way to overcome that biological impulse was with a spiritual fire and with developing community — and the only way to develop community was through conversation,” the secretary added.
RFK Jr. discussed faith and Christianity and spoke passionately about how much Kirk believed in God.
“It’s only by surrender to God that God’s power can flow into our lives and make us effective human beings,” Kennedy said.
RELATED: Charlie Kirk supporters offer prayers and praise as memorial kicks off
First son Donald Trump Jr. stressed that Kirk’s progress cannot die out and that the passion he poured into TPUSA be carried on with the organization. This, along with the pursuit of the American dream, must manifest through evangelism within the United States, he continued.
“If we’re truly going to honor Charlie properly, his loss cannot be the end of the story. His legacy must be that when they took his life, a million more Charlies stepped up to fill the void,” Trump Jr. passionately remarked,
“We won’t back down. We won’t be intimidated.”
“Our message of faith, family, and country will not be silenced.”
RELATED: Why Charlie Kirk’s murder feels personal — even if you never met him
Trump Jr.’s words echoed those spoken by many, who all recognized Kirk’s wish that the youth of America push forward with a more conservative and Christian set of ideals.
Several speakers, including Trump Jr., described how Kirk started his activism at very young age, as a model for other young conservatives. However, not everyone did an impression of the president, as Trump Jr. did.
“You’re getting a little aggressive on social media, Don,” Trump Jr. joked in his father’s voice. “Relax.”
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