Did you see that Erika Kirk has been smiling and even laughing in public since her husband died? You’re not the only one.
Now she’s talking, and she’s giving an emotional reason for it.
Cried a lot
It was just over a month ago that Charlie Kirk, a 30-year-old MAGA activist, was shot in the neck on a college campus in Utah on September 10.
After a 33-hour search, the FBI found the suspected shooter, 22-year-old Tyler Robinson from Utah. He is said to have known that Kirk was in the state before the shooting.
On September 21, a huge memorial service for Kirk took place at State Farm Stadium in Arizona. About 100,000 people came to pay their respects. President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance gave speeches in honor of Kirk, and there were poignant film montages of his life and work, including never-before-seen images from the day he was killed.
Erika gave a moving eulogy during the event, crying and laughing as she thought over her husband’s life and their time together.
Criticism of Candace Owens
Since then, the mother of two has made a few public appearances, including as a guest on her late husband’s podcast, where she talked about becoming the new CEO of Turning Point USA, the conservative group that Charlie started when he was 18.
But some online were upset with her for being “too happy” during those appearances. Candace Owens, a conservative broadcaster, also criticized Erika’s behavior.
Owens said that Erika Kirk should have publicly asked for information about who killed her husband instead of taking images just hours after he died.
Erika answered the criticism directly by noting, “There is no linear blueprint for grief.”
She stated, “One day you’re on the floor crying out the name Jesus between labored breaths.”
Erika’s explanation
“The next time you play with your kids in the living room, surrounded by family photos, you’ll feel a rush of something you can only call divinely planted and bittersweet joy as a smile breaks through on your face.”
She went on, “They say time heals.” But love doesn’t want to be healed. “Love wants to be remembered.”
She said, “I carry my Charlie in every breath, every ache, and every quiet act of daily life as I try to relearn what that rhythm will be.”
On January 19, 2025, in Washington, DC, Charlie Kirk (R) and his wife, Erika Lane Frantzve (L), were on stage at the Salamander Hotel for the Turning Point USA Inaugural-Eve Ball. (Photo by Samuel Corum/Getty Images)
Erika, Charlie Kirk’s wife, and their two young children are still alive.
Tyler Robinson, 22, who grew up in a suburb of Utah and went to Utah State University for a short time before leaving to join an electrical apprenticeship program, is now facing a number of serious charges in connection with Kirk’s death.
These include aggravated murder, two charges of obstructing justice, criminal discharge of a firearm causing serious bodily injury, two counts of tampering with a witness, and conducting a violent crime in front of a kid.
A waiver hearing has been set on October 30, and the suspect is anticipated to be there in person.