1 In 9 Americans Still Believe Political Violence Is Sometimes Justified
13th September 2025
Unless you live under a rock, you will jnow by now that conservative activist Charlie Kirk (31) was shot dead while speaking at an event at Utah Valley University on Wednesday.
At the time of writing, the shooter is still at large and a manhunt is underway.
Kirk was an ally of U.S. President Donald Trump and the founder of Turning Point USA, a conservative student movement.
In a statement, Trump blamed the rhetoric of the “radical left” for Kirk’s death while politicians on both sides of the aisle shared their condolences.
The shooting adds to a growing list of incidents of politically-motivated violence in the United States, with echoes of an incident last year when Trump was also nearly shot at a rally in front of a crowd.
Despite the major rift that exists between left and right, data shows that such acts of political violence are not tolerated by the vast majority of U.S. adults.