Political Violence in America

By Rob C

Art by AI

I condemn the shooting of Charlie Kirk, and my heart goes out to his family. Political violence rarely delivers anything but tragedy. But it’s not enough to stop at “thoughts and prayers.” We must look at cause and effect: the rhetoric that fuels violence, the media’s complicity, and the reality that the vast majority of politically motivated violence in America comes from the far right. Ignoring this only makes more bloodshed likely.

I condemn political violence and feel deep compassion for Mr. Charlie Kirk’s family. Acts like yesterday’s shooting rarely produce anything desirable—only grief, fear, and more division. But we can’t stay in the realm of “thoughts and prayers”. We must look at cause and effect.

We don’t yet know who killed Mr. Kirk, or what the motive was; drawing conclusions now would be premature, to say the least. When a registered Republican attempted to shoot candidate Trump, the motive was unclear then, too. So with Kirk’s death, it’s right to hold off on certainty—and imperative to examine the environment that bred this moment.

Who Was Charlie Kirk: His Words, His Influence

What we do know is what Kirk said and how he influenced politics. He founded Turning Point USA at 18, became a darling of the far-right media ecosystem, and made a career (and fortune) largely by stoking division. On LGBTQ issues, abortion, race, and immigration, his statements were often deliberately inflammatory.

In some of his more disturbing remarks, Kirk attacked Black women leaders and affirmative action. For instance, he said that “these exceedingly smart, strong, successful Black women do not have brain processing power [to be] otherwise taken seriously without affirmative action. You had to steal a white person’s slot.”¹ He called MLK Jr. “awful” and claimed “we made a huge mistake when we passed the Civil Rights Act in the 1960s.”² He regularly described LGBTQ people as “groomers” and labeled gender-affirming care “destructive.”³

His influence was amplified by right-wing media and social networks that rewarded outrage. Because when outrage sells, hate is profitable.

What the Data Says: Political Violence, Far-Right Near the Top

According to research from the National Institute of Justice (NIJ) and similar domestic terrorism studies, far-right extremists commit more ideologically motivated homicides and violent attacks than far-left or other categories.⁴ For example, militant, nationalistic, white supremacist extremism has increased, and over decades far-right attacks have outpaced other extremist categories.⁵

In 2025 alone, incidents of politically motivated attacks surged—experts note around 150 politically motivated attacks in the first half of the year, nearly double what was recorded in the same period in 2024.⁶ Corporate media and pundits praise or lament individual cases—depending on who the victim is—often while ignoring the larger pattern: that the majority of political violence in the U.S. is being driven by far-right actors.

Also worth noting: on June 14, 2025, two Democratic Minnesota state lawmakers were the victims of what authorities described as targeted political violence. Former House Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband Mark were fatally shot in their home, while State Senator John Hoffman and his wife, Yvette, were shot and seriously wounded. The suspect, Vance Luther Boelter, who allegedly posed as a police officer and had a list of political figures in his car, held deeply religious and politically conservative views.⁹ Governor Tim Walz called it an “act of targeted political violence.”⁹

Details from Time, PBS Newshour, Reuters — the suspect was arrested, many “No Kings” flyers and names of Democratic lawmakers/supporters were found, and prosecutors have said it was politically motivated.

The Media’s Double Standard

What’s alarming is how corporate media respond. When Charlie Kirk was murdered, many outlets immediately offered condemnation (rightly), and also lavished praise on his "style" or effectiveness—as though that deserves applause. But considering his record of hateful, divisive rhetoric, that praise glosses over how that rhetoric helps fuel a climate where violence becomes more likely.

In Democracy for Sale, I show how the corporate media avoid real journalism. They often pick up stories from far-right outlets and treat them as serious reporting. They frame right-wing political violence as isolated incidents, or shocking exceptions, rather than symptoms of a broader violent ecosystem they themselves help enable. They advertise figures like Kirk, amplify their words, offer platforms, then act shocked when someone turns up dead.

Why Cause & Effect Matters

Because ignoring cause and effect does two things: it gives cover to perpetrators, and it fails to protect the public. If hateful rhetoric makes violence more likely, then praising the purveyors of that rhetoric is not harmless. If an ecosystem of fear, conspiracy, dehumanization, and polarization gives rise to violence, then those who profit from that ecosystem bear responsibility.

Some key observations:

• Experts warn that Kirk’s killing could serve as a flashpoint—leading to a vicious spiral of retaliatory acts and more political violence.⁷

• The spread of far-right ideology is not confined to fringe forums; it has seeped into political discourse, mainstream media, and cultural expectations. Ideas that were once “fringe” are now normalized.⁸

Class Warfare, Not Chaos

Martin Luther King Jr. taught us that “words are powerful.” Words that demonize, dehumanize, or delegitimize whole groups do not stay in the realm of speech forever. They can become violence.

Many on the right are already calling for civil war, pursuing a white nationalist agenda. This isn’t just a war on individual victims; it’s an attempted war on the structure of democracy itself.

I condemn what happened to Charlie Kirk. I feel for his family. But tenderness without analysis is insufficient. We must connect the dots. Because this moment isn’t about just a single act of violence or a tragic loss—it’s about recognizing that many on the right have made political violence both their tool and their threat.

It’s not just political violence. It’s cultural warfare - and when that happens, we all loose.

Footnotes

1. Common Dreams — Kirk comments on Black women and affirmative action.

2. Common Dreams — Kirk calling MLK “awful” and decrying the Civil Rights Act.

3. Common Dreams — Kirk remarks on LGBTQ people and gender-affirming care.

4. NIJ (National Institute of Justice) research on domestic terrorism.

5. NIJ — extremist trends show far-right outpaces other groups.

6. Reuters, Sept 11, 2025 — reporting on politically motivated attacks nearly doubling year-on-year.

7. Reuters — experts warn Kirk’s death could spark a spiral of retaliatory violence.

8. Journal of Democracy — far-right political violence becoming normalized.

9. washingtonpost.com+6time.com+6pbs.org+6