From Yahoo News:
A cohort of five Republican legislators have proposed a bill that would appropriate $25,000 of state money for a statue of Charlie Kirk to be erected on the University of Minnesota ‘s Twin Cities campus.
State Sen. Nathan Wesenberg, Sen. Eric Lucero, Sen. Steve Drazkowski, Sen. Bill Lieske, and Sen. Michael Holmstrom co-authored the bill. Last year, Drazkowski notably authored legislation designating "Trump Derangement Syndrome" as a mental illness.
Why a statue for such a racist, anti-LGBTQIA+ person?
As a reminder, here's what he's said.
1. "Prowling Blacks go around for fun to go target white people" Said on The Charlie Kirk Show podcast, circa 2023–2024. This statement falsely portrays Black people as predatory criminals targeting white people — a classic racist trope.
2. "If I see a Black pilot, I'm going to be like, 'Boy, I hope he's qualified'" Said on The Charlie Kirk Show ("Thoughtcrime" segment with Jack Posobiec), January 18, 2024. Verified as accurate by FactCheck.org and Newsweek. It implies Black pilots are unqualified by default — a racist assumption.
3. "You had to go steal a white person's slot to go be taken somewhat seriously" Said on his podcast, directed at Black women like Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson. This frames Black advancement as illegitimate theft from white people.
4. Calling prominent Black women "affirmative action picks" A recurring theme on his show throughout 2023–2024, applied to figures like Justice Jackson, implying Black women in prominent roles didn't earn their positions.
5. Questioning whether a Black woman in customer service was hired via affirmative action Documented on his show, 2023–2024. Singling out a random Black service worker as likely unqualified is textbook racial prejudice.
6. Calling George Floyd a "scumbag" Said publicly on his show/at events. Using a dehumanizing slur for a man whose killing sparked a national reckoning on race reflects contempt for Black lives and the movement for racial justice.
7. Invoking "Great Replacement" rhetoric Repeatedly on his show and at events, Kirk warned that Democrats wanted "America to become less white" — language directly drawn from white nationalist conspiracy theories about the deliberate replacement of white Americans.
8. Calling affirmative action the only reason prominent Black women advanced in their careers A broad, sweeping claim made repeatedly on his podcast in 2023, denying the qualifications and achievements of Black professionals categorically.
9. Calling FAA air traffic controllers "morons and affirmative-action people" Said on his show in January 2024 in the context of airline safety debates, equating diversity hiring with incompetence across an entire workforce.
10. Denying systemic racism while attributing racial disparities to Black culture and family structure A consistent theme across his show and speeches, 2022–2024, which dismisses documented structural inequalities and instead blames Black Americans for their own disadvantages — a form of racist scapegoating.
On the LGBTQ+ Community
1. "Stoning of gay people... God's perfect law" In a June 2024 episode of his podcast, Kirk invoked Leviticus 18, saying: "thou shall lay with another man shall be stoned to death. Just saying." He called this "God's perfect law when it comes to sexual matters." FactCheck.org This came in response to a YouTuber quoting "love thy neighbor."
2. Transgender people are a "throbbing middle finger to God" In 2023, Kirk took the stage at a megachurch and called transgender people an "abomination" and a "throbbing middle finger to God." The Advocate
3. The transgender movement is a gateway to becoming machines In February 2022, Kirk said: "The transgender movement actually matters even more than biomedical fascism... the transgender movement is an introductory phase to get you to strip yourself of your humanity to mesh with machines." The Advocate
4. Gay people "want to corrupt your children" In 2022 on his YouTube show, Kirk said conservatives mistakenly thought same-sex marriage would be the end of it, concluding that gay people "are not happy just having marriage. Instead, they now want to corrupt your children." Wikipedia
5. Being gay is an "error" comparable to drug addiction Kirk claimed that being gay was an "error" and likened homosexuality to drug addiction. Wikipedia (Wikipedia, sourced to contemporaneous reporting)
6. Suggesting transgender people should be treated "the way we used to" in the 1950s and '60s In early 2023, he said that transgender women in women's locker rooms should be "taken care of the way we used to take care of things in the 1950s and '60s." The Advocate As the article notes, that era's "treatments" included lobotomy, shock therapy, and involuntary institutionalization.
7. Calling for "Nuremberg-style trials" for doctors who provide gender-affirming care Kirk proposed that health professionals who provide gender-affirming care be subjected to a "Nuremberg-style trial." Factually
8. "Transgenderism and gender 'fluidity' are lies that hurt people and abuse kids" In an October 2021 op-ed for The American Mind, Kirk wrote: "the facts are that there are only two genders; that transgenderism and gender 'fluidity' are lies that hurt people and abuse kids." Wikipedia
9. Called LGBTQ activists the "alphabet mafia" Kirk called LGBTQ activists the "alphabet mafia" and described Obergefell v. Hodges (the Supreme Court ruling that legalized same-sex marriage) as "a national takeover of our laws." Wikipedia
10. "Pride is a sin" Kirk proclaimed "Pride is a sin" and dismissed "gay corporations that hate America." Washington Blade
And yes - he was a HUGE proponent of spreading the RACIST/XENOPHOBIC "China Virus" lies which made even more Asian Hate among Asian Americans while at the same time subscribing to the Model Minority stereotype.
So call out State Sen. Nathan Wesenberg, Sen. Eric Lucero, Sen. Steve Drazkowski, Sen. Bill Lieske, and Sen. Michael Holmstrom and let them know this is not okay.
