Conservative activist C.J. Pearson believes that despite the horrific assassination of Charlie Kirk, many others will now carry the torch of the movement he started.
Kirk, who founded Turning Point USA and became well known for holding political debates on college campuses, was killed by an assassin’s bullet during an outdoor event last week on Utah Valley University’s campus.
Pearson, who is the GOP Youth Advisory Co-Chair and attended The University of Alabama, reflected on the legacy of Kirk Wednesday on WVNN’s “The Dale Jackson Show.”
“I knew Charlie since I was 12 years old, you know, I started making content at that age, and when my first video went viral, he was one of the first people in the national conservative movement to reach out to me,” Pearson explained.
“He actually messaged me on Twitter and said, ‘Hey, CJ, I love your stuff. Keep going, keep fighting’. And for someone like me, he grew up in a household of Democrats. I wasn’t necessarily the most validated person in my own household, so to have that external validation from such a giant of a man like Charlie, even at that age, meant a lot to me.”
Pearson also discussed the the reaction by some who study at the University of Alabama.
“I was talking with the president of Turning Point USA here at Alabama just a few days ago, who told me that their membership in the aftermath of Charlie’s killing went from 200 people to 700 people in just a few days. So, you know, the conservative community on this campus is growing.”
Pearson lamented some of the insensitive comments from some of the professors on the campus.
“For example, we have one professor here, AJ Bauer, who teaches in the journalism school, who basically said that right on right violence is getting out of control,” he said. “He said that shortly after the Charlie Kirk assassin was detained, that. Peddling a blue a non conspiracy theory that Charlie Kirk was somehow gunned down by a MAGA Republican that has no place on this campus. And so I think there are a lot of other instances I saw.”
Overall, Pearson said he’s optimistic about the future because Kirk’s movement will only grow stronger as a result of this tragedy.
“My heart was broken, not because I just lost a friend, but because our nation, our country, lost one of its greatest patriots,” he said. “But what I am so relieved to see is that his movement continues to live on. You know, you see these vigils all across the country. They’re being absolutely packed out. People are continuing, not just to, you know, carry the torch, but like many others, there are many people who weren’t involved before who are now getting involved, starting Turning Point USA chapters. And I think Charlie is looking down from heaven, grinning ear to ear.”
Pearson is hosting a memorial rally for Kirk tonight from 5-7 p.m. in Tuscaloosa at Two Dimes Bama, just off UA’s campus:
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Yaffee is a contributing writer to Yellowhammer News and hosts “The Yaffee Program” weekdays 9-11 a.m. on WVNN. You can follow him on Twitter @Yaffee
