On Thursday night, USC’s chapter of Turning Point USA held a vigil for recently assassinated conservative media personality Charlie Kirk at the Trojan Grand Ballroom. Nearly 50 people attended the event, which was open to the USC community. 

Giani Tamburrino, a freshman majoring in political science, attended the event because he felt that Charlie Kirk had a large impact on his life and was an important voice for Christians. 

“Watching him be able to articulate his point of view so respectfully with other people [started my interest],” Tamburrino said. “Even when he would face hostile students and have hostile interactions, he would remain calm and still find a way to have respectful political discourse.” 

Kirk himself visited campus March of last semester and held an open debate, drawing hundreds of students to Hahn plaza. Turning Point USA also funded some student government candidates at USC in 2018 for the Campus Victory Project, a project aimed at shifting college campuses rightward. 

Natham Pham, a member of USC’s chapter of Turning Point USA, spoke at the event and discussed Kirk’s political and spiritual effect on his life. 

“[Kirk] helped drag me out of a period of nihilism, and he gave me hope in Jesus Christ, and I hope that he does that for all of you as well and continues to inspire you and your faith,” Pham said. “As we reflect on his life and the legacy that he left for us, we should be leaving this room and asking ourselves, ‘What kind of improvement can we make in our life?’” 

Ben Penney, a freshman majoring in public relations and advertising, attended the event to support Tamburrino and because he himself closely followed Kirk’s debates.

“He was a very active part of my life for a long time, and so I just wanted to be able to spend some time with the people who wanted to honor his legacy because I really do think that he was someone who promoted educated discourse among people,” Penney said. 

In his remarks, Pham said that Kirk came onto college campuses to speak to what was “true and beautiful” and that Kirk’s debates with college students that were posted to social media led to other aspects of his life, such as his family, being overlooked.

“It’s very easy for us to get this impression that [Kirk was] just a MAGA guy, [that] he’s more political than he is a father or a believer in Christ. That’s the identity that I believe is often overshadowed,” Pham said. “That’s the kind of bravery and courage that we all should aspire to work toward.”

Tamburrino shared his hopes for the future legacy of Kirk, emphasizing a move toward nonviolent positive discourse.

“I hope that people can start to have more political discourse about important policy, like public policy, and about our government and about our country without fighting and without being violent,” Tamburrino said. 

Isaiah Villegas, a sophomore majoring in dance, said that Kirk was one of the first people on the internet who “spoke up for what [he] felt inside” and that Kirk influenced him to voice his opinions despite opposition. 

“Something that Charlie has taught me was that no matter where you are, no matter what other people say, the convictions you have in your own self should be enough to just speak out,” Villegas said. 

Penney said Kirk had an impact on creating formal debates that encouraged people on both sides of the political spectrum to share their perspectives. 

“It doesn’t matter what side you’re really on. You can watch his videos or watch the videos that others post with him, and you can really learn a lot about both sides without it feeling like two political parties attacking one another,” Penney said. “I really appreciated and respected that of him.”