Student Who Debated Charlie Kirk Moments Before Assassination Speaks Out

The Utah Valley University (UVU) student who was debating Turning Point USA (TPUSA) founder Charlie Kirk when Kirk was assassinated spoke out Thursday on CNN.

Kirk was gunned down during a TPUSA “Prove Me Wrong” event at UVU Wednesday, during which he was debating Kozak about mass shooters and transgenderism. A portion of UVU student Hunter Kozak’s online statement was played by “Out Front” host Erin Burnett. (RELATED: ‘In A Bad Place’: Scott Jennings Questions If It Is ‘Safe To Be An Outspoken Conservative’)

“People have obviously pointed to the irony that … the point that I was trying to make is how peaceful the left was right before he [Kirk] got shot,” an emotional Kozak said in the clip played on CNN. “And that, that only makes sense if we stay peaceful. And as much as I disagree with Charlie Kirk — I‘m on the record for how much I disagree with Charlie Kirk — but like, man, dude, he is still a human being. Have we forgotten that? Are we crazy?”

WATCH:

Authorities reportedly have a suspect in custody, identified as 22-year-old Tyler Robinson. President Donald Trump announced the arrest during a Friday morning appearance on “Fox and Friends.”

Kirk founded TPUSA, an organization for conservative college and high school students, in June 2012, according to the group’s website. He also hosted “The Charlie Kirk Show,” a podcast that later became a radio show on the Salem Radio Network, according to his biography on TPUSA’s site.

TPUSA events have been targets of violent protests in the past. The Dartmouth College chapter planned to host journalist Andy Ngo and Gabriel Nadales, a former member of the left-wing group, to discuss Antifa at a January 2022 event before the college converted it to a virtual event due to security concerns.

The TPUSA chapter at Lee’s Summit West High School planned to hold their first tabling event in the school library in May 2022, but left-wing students allegedly derailed the meeting, according to a release by the student group.

Riley Gaines, a vocal critic of allowing biological males to compete in women’s sports, was assaulted during an April 6, 2023, event at San Francisco State University hosted by TPUSA.

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