Rightwing political group Turning Point USA has really crossed a line, turning a replica of the location where co-founder Charlie Kirk was murdered into a bizarre photo opportunity at their annual AmericaFest convention. This is absolutely awful optics, and honestly, it just feels deeply unsettling that anyone thought this was a good idea.
Turning Point, the organization Kirk helped create to encourage young people toward conservative politics, hosted AmericaFest over the weekend, per Daily Dot. While the event featured high-profile speakers like Vice President JD Vance and Ben Shapiro, it also served as a strange memorial to Kirk, who was shot and killed during an event at Utah Valley University in September.
As part of the spectacle, organizers set up a full-scale replica of the tent Kirk was sitting under when he died. Worse than simply recreating the scene, they installed a ring light and actively encouraged attendees to pose for photos against the backdrop, which included images of Kirk himself. You’d think that even in the world of political conventions, there would be some limit to how far groups will go for a viral moment, but apparently not.
He is a idol at this point, and people eat it up
Turning Kirk’s tragic death into a selfie station immediately sparked widespread backlash, and not just from people generally opposed to the group. Even outspoken conservatives were visibly uncomfortable with the choice, calling the display bafflingly tacky and morbid.
Conservative commentator Candace Owens weighed in, making it clear that the stunt missed the mark entirely. She expressed disbelief at the idea of recreating the scene. “Recreating the tent Charlie died under for selfies? Seriously?” Owens wrote. She also noted that the entire convention felt “out of touch and elite,” suggesting it wasn’t relatable for the average blue-collar worker.
Many others online echoed this sentiment, questioning the appropriateness of the memorial. One person wondered if the pop-up gazebo was meant to replace a traditional religious symbol. Another commenter didn’t mince words, calling the organizers “demented sick people.” They added, “Might as well have a taxidermy of Charlie if they have gone to that extent.”
The tent was just one piece of a convention that left many feeling uneasy about the direction of right-wing political organizing. Podcaster Tim Dillon came down particularly hard on the whole affair, calling the event an “abomination.” Dillon accused the entire political right of becoming little more than a “bad reality show.”
He argued that the atmosphere was designed to manipulate attendees. “Everything about this is weird and uncomfortable for everyone,” Dillon explained. “This is deeply unsettling to a lot of people. It feels like you’re being played. You feel it. It seems off. You feel like this is a coordinated and choreographed spectacle so that you are played. They want your money.”
The controversy extended to those closest to Kirk. Questions were raised online about how Charlie Kirk’s widow, Erika Kirk, could even tolerate being near the highly emotional display. One person on social media asked, “How was Erika Kirk even able to be anywhere near this?! How was she able to be okay with this even being there?!” The commenter went on to suggest that if she was truly devastated by his murder, the display should have caused her to break down, suggesting the whole thing was just a “performance.”
Perhaps the most telling moment of the entire convention came from Erika Kirk herself, who seemed to accidentally summarize the feelings of many critics. While speaking about the continuation of her husband’s work after his passing, she had a massive Freudian slip. She started to speak about how a colleague had persisted with the same “grift,” before quickly correcting herself to say “grit.”
Published: Dec 24, 2025 08:22 am