San Diego State University students react to Charlie Kirk killing

The murder of conservative activist Charlie Kirk last Wednesday sent shock waves through the country Kirk founder of right-wing advocacy group Turning Point USA was speaking at an outdoor event for the organization at Utah Valley University when suspect Tyler Robinson allegedly shot and killed Kirk from a nearby rooftop Following his death San Diego State University students disclosed fears of campus political violence It s such a weird situation because of what he stood for compared to how he died announced first-year management trainee Marcus Facione I d never wish death on anybody but I think if there s any moment in time any day to really think about the fact that our country requirements specific change I think that day was a really really big reminder to the world that there necessities to be a few change regarding gun laws and gun violence Second-year music scholar Maddie who did not want to disclose her last name due to safety concerns disavowed the violence but didn t have concerns about it happening at SDSU I m very against gun violence so I would be a little concerned about that she stated But considering he was the main target and not the students the event in itself wasn t dangerous other than for him obviously Social media and campus conversations Other students pointed out the odd persistence of the topic in social media and campus conversations I think it s strange that people are only starting to care about gun violence now noted first-year psychology attendee Erin Kim I don t even know if these people have heard him talk and his hate speech because everyone s like Rest in peace Gun violence is so bad now And it s been bad and they re just starting to talk about it So it s kind of making me annoyed On March Turning Point s novice chapter at SDSU hosted Kirk for a Prove Me Wrong outdoor tabling session and at a Live Free Tour event inside Conrad Prebys Aztec Novice Union Now I m a little concerned about violence since he was here Kim stated after being informed of Kirk s past presence I feel like this is a more liberal school so I hope we wouldn t have someone like that come and talk But I know people like him just because he would allow others to express their opinions even though he would shoot them down easily I really hope we don t invite someone like that here Political event precaution on campus While SDSU did not disclose specific shield measures or whether they will be increasing safety for future political events like these on campus they announced that they work closely with the University Police Department to develop comprehensive safety plans All recognized participant organizations seeking to host events on campus are required to submit a request through the university s Event Application System the university explained in a comment This process requires organizers to outline key logistical elements including safety measure ticketing and crowd management plans Only after review and approval through this process including consultation with campus safety professionals and the University Police Department is a space-use permit granted First-year business management pupil Lilly Pederson noted her fears of gun violence at school have stuck with her since elementary school lockdown drills but that she has different concerns about the consequences of his assassination One thing that I did think was beautiful about Charlie Kirk was his openness and his directness Pederson reported He was fearless of sharing his full views and his extreme ideas And I far from agree with that but I can acknowledge he harnessed his rights as an American to express them so openly So I hope that students and other political activists or figures aren t silenced by this attack that they still feel free to be an American and express their views and have freedom and not feel restricted by what happened But I do think that everybody is gonna err on the side of caution more Making the campus a safe space for open discussions SDSU President Adela de la Torre sent out a campus email the night of the shooting that echoed a similar sentiment College campuses should be a beacon of encouragement for civil political discourse and civic engagement the email read Like a multitude of others nationwide including elected bureaucrats and higher teaching leaders we are horrified by the murder of Charlie Kirk this afternoon Violence has no place in our country and we must recognize that every such act is a grave threat to our democracy and to the safety and dignity of us all Pederson stated she appreciated the email but wondered where this sentiment was for other apparent casualties of political violence such as Rep Melissa Hortman who was assassinated in her Minnesota home in June I think that not only do we need to condemn political violence but we need to bring awareness to it more and awareness not just because the person was controversial or because they were famous Pederson mentioned I do not think that we gave enough coverage to the political violence a sparse months ago that Representative Hortman faced And to me that is equivalent to what happened to Charlie Kirk She was a lawmaker she was a citizens servant and I think that s kind of the difference between her and Charlie Sophie Felarca a first-year psychology trainee also pointed out the promising hypocrisy I just thought it was really engaging how the school was addressing Charlie Kirk Felarca explained And then they barely speak about the instances about the Latino area T hey didn t really talk specifically for that area about all the dangers that are going around for them and I feel like that since the school has such a big population of them that they should definitely speak more about that instead of specifically just a conservative who was shot