Vigil for Charlie Kirk draws about 250
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Roughly 250 people held a vigil in Brandon Friday evening to honour American conservative activist Charlie Kirk, who was shot to death a week and a half ago while speaking at a university in Utah.
They lit dozens of candles and brought dainties for after the vigil ended at the old firehall on Princess Avenue.
“Charlie was many things — a thinker, a diplomat, an advocate, a builder, but most of all, he was a believer, a believer in an almighty, loving God in truth, in liberty and in the extraordinary potential of the human spirit,” said MC Phil Dorn.
Two people add lit candles to a table at the front of the dining room at the Firehall Event Venue on Princess Avenue during a vigil for American conservative activist Charlie Kirk, who was shot to death earlier this month as he spoke to university students in Utah. The candlelight vigil drew about 250 mourners and supporters on Friday evening. (Photos by Matt Goerzen/The Brandon Sun)
The 31-year-old Kirk, who founded Turning Point USA, was shot dead while holding a public debate at Utah Valley University.
“His life was not lived quietly. It was linked boldly with urgency and unshakable clarity. He stood often when others sat,” said Dorn, the president and senior engineer of Samson Engineering.
“He spoke when silence was the easier path, and he challenged when comfort would have been enough.”
Mourners prayed and sang the Canadian national anthem to start off the event. Later, some people read scriptures from the Bible and spoke about what Kirk’s death meant to them.
“Charlie dealt with fear just like anybody else, but what he had was an antidote of fear: courage to do the right thing,” said Juanito Aunay. “Charlie was willing to take the risk in order to do the right thing.”
A woman attendee, who spoke to the crowd after organizers made the event an open mic, said Kirk had “a genuine care for others.”
Mourners and supporters attend Friday’s candlelight vigil at the Firehall Event Venue on Princess Avenue in Brandon.
Others said Kirk’s debates on university campuses led to more conversation, with a woman saying, “When people stop talking, that’s when violence happens.”
Across the street, about 20 protesters held signs, lit their own candles and cheered as their supporters honked while driving by.
“We stand boldly with our immigrant, trans, queer, black and brown neighbours,” read one sign.
The protesters left about 20 minutes after the vigil started.
The Brandon vigil follows other vigils around the United States and Canada honouring the slain activist, including one in Winnipeg earlier this week that drew about 2,000 mourners, according to the Winnipeg Free Press.
Kirk’s death also drew local controversy after Families Minister Nahanni Fontaine apologized for sharing an Instagram post critical of Kirk, saying she extends “absolutely no empathy for people like that.”
A group of about 20 protesters, many of them students from Brandon University, held a counter-vigil on the south side of Princess Avenue for the first 20 minutes of the vigil for Charlie Kirk, holding signs in support of LGBTQ2 communities, minorities and immigrant populations. Several passing motorists honked their horns as they drove past in support of the counter-vigil, which drew cheers from the group.
Progressive Conservative Opposition Leader Obby Khan called for Fontaine’s removal from cabinet. A petition for her removal was also started online, amassing 8,551 signatures as of Friday evening. Premier Wab Kinew has said he won’t remove Fontaine as minister.
Tyler Robinson, 22, the alleged gunman in Kirk’s death, has been charged with seven offences, including aggravated murder.
» alambert@brandonsun.com