Op-Ed: Divided We Fall, United We Stand — An Appeal to Progressives, Conservatives and Everyone In-Between

By William Hinson, staff writer 

September 12, 2025 

On Wednesday, conservative activist and youth organizer Charlie Kirk was struck down in cold blood by an assassin’s bullet while speaking to a crowd of students at Utah Valley University. Like many Americans, I am horrified and outraged by what happened that day, and my heart is full of fear for the future of public discourse in this country. Nobody who lives in the United States of America should ever be the victim of physical violence simply for expressing their political views. That goes for all of us: those on the left, those on the right and those in the middle. 

Let me begin by saying that I am not a Republican. I am not a Democrat. I am not affiliated with any minor third party. I am an Independent. I did vote for Kamala Harris in the 2024 general election and am quite personally opposed to extremism on both the left and right. My reason for voting for Harris in 2024 was because I viewed her as the less extreme and more politically centrist candidate. Anybody who knows me personally will tell you that I am certainly no supporter of Mr. Kirk’s political ideology or even the way he sometimes presented his talking points. There were certainly times when I felt his rhetoric was focused more on sowing political division than actually making a legitimate political argument. That being said, he did not deserve to be murdered in cold blood for simply engaging in his First Amendment right to freedom of expression. 

What is even more disturbing is that his assassination is another event in a series of escalating incidents of political violence that has gripped the nation. In the last couple of years, we have witnessed an armed insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, two attempted assassinations of Donald Trump, the murder and attempted murder of two Democratic state lawmakers and their spouses in Minnesota, the attempted murder of the husband of the Speaker of the House of Representatives, the arson attack on the Pennsylvania governor's residence that took place while he was inside and the plotted kidnapping of the Michigan governor.  

All of these atrocious acts of politically motivated violence should be frightening to every American. For those on the political left who are presently mocking the death of Charlie Kirk, let me ask you a question: What good are you doing for your cause by engaging in such deplorable behavior? I can certainly empathize with not liking or agreeing with his political views, but he was a human being just like all of us. He leaves behind a wife and two young children who will never be able to experience having a father again and who are far too young to understand the current state of political affairs in this country and why someone would want to take their dad from them. I also believe that he was, at his core, someone who loved his family and wished to create what was, in his view, a better America for them. As someone whose ultimate life goal is to have a family like the one Kirk had, it breaks my heart to see someone who so passionately cared about the future of his family, and how it would be affected by the direction of our country, be so senselessly murdered. 

I have another message for those who find joy in this senseless and horrific crime. Most of you probably do not wish to see conservatives and Republicans in positions of government authority. Let me say, as a centrist American who has spent his life studying both political ideologies and making friends with those on both the left and right, that you are only pushing this country away from your cause and into the very hands of the people to whom you claim to be so opposed.  

Charlie Kirk’s political assassination will unquestionably turn him into a martyr-like figure on the right and will inspire and give rise to even more young right-wing activists who will be dedicated to preserving and promoting his message. It is likely that these future activists will be driving forces behind the Republican Party for years, if not decades, to come, and they will almost certainly be present in the next presidential election in 2028. If the idea of a Republican president after Trump, such as JD Vance, who is arguably more ideologically committed to right-wing populism than Trump, you ought to be doing everything you possibly can to condemn this horrific crime and not letting those on the far-right use it as just another example of how “the radical left” is an existential threat to the continuing way of life for everyday Americans.  

As someone who was personally opposed to Charlie Kirk’s political opinions, I did respect his ability and willingness to engage civilly in debate with those with whom he disagreed. Love him or loathe him, he believed in promoting his message, even if it was divisive, and he did so in a way that was peaceful and absolutely protected under the First Amendment. The person who decided to take his life arguably lacked the intellectual maturity and understanding of how to peacefully confront him on his political opinions --- a real sign of a primitive mindset. If you can’t come up with a verbal rebuttal to what your political opponent is saying and instead resort to personal attacks or worse, an act of physical violence, that demonstrates a lack of interpersonal intelligence. I’m reminded of something my father told me from a young age: When arguing about politics, or anything for that matter, the person who goes the longest without either personally insulting or physically attacking the other ultimately prevails. 

I want to end with a message of hope for our country. In response to Kirk's assassination, we saw a bipartisan response from leaders across the country. Politicians as far to the right as Marjorie Taylor Greene and Lauren Boebert and those as far to the left as Bernie Sanders, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Zohran Mamdani all came together to condemn Kirk’s murder. The shooting triggered a response from all living former presidents, something that is quite rare and is typically only reserved for moments of great national significance and concern. This period of political unity may be only a brief moment that could already be gone, but I encourage everyone to keep the faith that things will get better.

I want to challenge everyone who reads this article to go outside, talk to your neighbor, talk to someone who might have a different worldview. Tell them that no matter what differences in opinion you have with them, you still consider them to be a fellow American, one who is worthy of the same certain unalienable rights of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. We all want what is best for our country, and sometimes we disagree on how to get there. I, for one, do not believe we should view our fellow countrymen as enemies simply for holding a difference of opinion on one or many policy matters. Let us turn down the temperature and cease the personal hostilities, because as Abraham Lincoln famously said in 1858, “a house divided against itself cannot stand.” We must heed Lincoln’s warning and come together to move forward as one America.