Erika Kirk fought back tears as she forgave the man who took her husband, Charlie Kirk's, life and called for unity and peace in an emotional and powerful speech that left mourners speechless on Sunday.
The mother of two, who was speaking in front of a packed stadium in Glendale, Arizona, directly addressed Tyler Robinson, the man accused of shooting and killing her husband, while he spoke to students at Utah Valley University. Addressing more than 60,000 mourners at State Farm Stadium, Erika Kirk shared that she believed her husband would have wanted her to forgive the man accused of killing him, and she did exactly that a week later.
Final Goodbye
"He wanted to save young men. Just like the one who took his life," Kirk's widow said through tears, speaking behind the presidential seal on stage at State Farm Stadium. She added: "I forgive him because it was what Christ did. And what Charlie would do."
"The answer to hate is not hate. The answer we know from the gospel is love and always love. Love for our enemies and love for those who persecute us," Erika continued.
She went on to say that she would not seek the death penalty for Robinson, the man accused of killing her husband, telling the New York Times: "I do not want that man's blood on my ledger.
"Because when I get to heaven, and Jesus is like: 'Uh, eye for an eye? Is that how we do it?' And that keeps me from being in heaven, from being with Charlie?"
Erika received a heartfelt embrace from President Trump, who had just delivered a powerful eulogy honoring Charlie Kirk as "a great American hero." From the stage, he promised Erika that their two young children would be raised in a world where their father's legacy would always be remembered and respected.
Trump has openly shared his sorrow since Kirk's tragic death, at times even saying he thought of him like another son.
Still, it was Erika's words that left the entire crowd stunned — with many breaking down in tears, even those watching from television screens outside the stadium.
Leaving a Lasting Impression
Dressed in all white and fighting back tears, Erika slowly made her way to the podium as the audience applauded. Speaking to more than 70,000 people inside — with nearly 200,000 gathered in total — she said, "God bless all of you for coming here from all over the world to honor and celebrate my Charlie."
"When you say 'here I am, lord, use me,' God will take you up on that. And he did with Charlie," she said, dabbing at her eyes with a tissue.
"Eleven days ago, God accepted that total surrender from my husband and then called him to his side," she continued.
"On the afternoon of Sept. 10, I arrived at a Utah hospital to do the unthinkable: To look directly at my husband's murdered body. I saw the wound that ended his life, I felt everything you would expect to feel. I felt shock, I felt horror and a level of heartache that I didn't even know existed," she said mournfully.
"But there was something else, too. Even in death I could see the man that I love. I could see the single gray hair on the side of his head, which I never told him about — now he knows, sorry baby."
This week, Erika shared with the New York Times that she now wears the blood-stained St. Michael pendant her husband had on the night he was fatally shot while speaking at Utah Valley University on Sept. 10.
She recalled that just the evening before the tragedy, she had pleaded with him to start wearing a bulletproof vest — with a friend even suggesting he speak from behind bulletproof glass.
"Not yet," Charlie had replied with his usual optimism, saying he trusted his security team and the extra precautions the university had put in place.
"He left this world without regrets. He did 100% of what he could do every day. But I want you all to know something. Charlie died with incomplete work, but not with unfinished business," she said as the audience erupted once again.
"I will miss him so much because our marriage and our family were beautiful, and still are. The greatest cause in Charlie's life was trying to revive the American family," she said, referencing his deeply held belief in the importance of family.
"When he spoke to young people he was always eager to tell them about God's vision to marriage, and how if they could just dare to live it out it would enrich every part of their live in the same way it enriched ours."
