By Lauren Burke
As news of the violent shooting of conservative activist Charlie Kirk at Utah Valley University soon became an announcement of his death, news of another mass shooting at Evergreen High School in Colorado also pushed into the news feeds.
Members of the U.S. House took note of both developments. Members of Congress were on the floor for a lengthy vote series when chaos erupted on the floor as several Democrats began shouting about the school shooting in Colorado. Republicans returned verbal fire by telling the Democrats to sit down. “Pass some gun laws!” a Democrat shouted back. The tense moment ended as Speaker Mike Johnson hit the gavel from the Speaker’s chair. On June 14, 2025, when Minnesota State Representative Melissa Hortman was assassinated at her home in Brooklyn Park, another jolt went through the American psyche regarding political violence. Hortman was the leader of the State House Democratic caucus and was murdered alongside her husband, Mark. On July 13, 2024, President Trump was grazed in the ear by a bullet, and Corey Comperatore, 50, was shot dead by a man with an AR-15–style rifle. Political violence once again has everyone’s attention. Few have answers they believe will be implemented into law. Since the expiration of the federal assault weapons ban in 2004, the number of mass shootings has risen sharply. Each time a mass shooting happens, many argue that incidents should not be “politicized.” But others maintain that something must be done. With the unexpected news of Kirk, who was 31, there are already attempts to politically weaponize his death from the right. But with 16,000 people dying of gun violence in 2024 (excluding suicides), the problem is likely not going away anytime soon. Kirk was a fervent Second Amendment advocate.
Over 6,000 students and faculty signed a petition for Charlie Kirk not to speak at Utah Valley University. But the school viewed the appearance as the type of event that reflected free speech, and the event moved forward. Though political violence is not new in the U.S., the level of awareness and almost immediate showing of the violence is a fairly new phenomenon. With that, the level of tension around political discourse in the United States appears to be rising. “The Charlie Kirk shooting is beyond horrific. Legitimately disgusted at the broken state of this country,” wrote progressive YouTube superstar Brian Tyler Cohen. “This afternoon, in addition to Charlie Kirk, there was a school shooting. Bullets don’t know and don’t care if you are a Republican or a Democrat. It is time for Republicans and Democrats to find a way to work together to reduce gun violence,” wrote Fred Guttenberg. His daughter was killed in a school shooting at Parkland High School on February 14, 2018.
Many are wondering what happens next.
