MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, Fla. — The founder of Florida International University’s Turning Point USA chapter is mourning the killing of the national organization’s founder, Charlie Kirk.
A gunman assassinated Kirk, 31, on Wednesday as he held a Turning Point event at Utah Valley University in Orem, Utah.
State Rep. Juan Carlos Porras, R-Miami-Dade, said he first met Kirk a decade ago as they founded the FIU chapter, one of the first in Florida.
“It was one of the largest student-led organizations at that time on campus. We had about 500 members,” Porras said. “He was beyond grateful, beyond honored. He was on campus multiple times.”
Then, Porras said, “When I ran for office the first time, he was one of the first calls I received.”
It’s still going strong. Isabelle Garcia, on the current board of the chapter, said Kirk “had a big influence on my life.”
She said Turning Point’s ideals of championing liberty, free markets and Christian values should not lead to violence.
“You can disagree with somebody, but to do it in a way where it takes somebody’s life, I think that’s very wrong and I think that if people can’t see that, then we have a lot of work to do,” Garcia said.
Porras, 28, reiterated that message, saying Kirk’s legacy will live on.
“Somebody (who) could not be defeated by words, he had to be defeated, unfortunately, by force, by a bullet,” Porras said. “I think students my age and younger will continue to feel the weight of his words.”
The University of Miami’s Turning Point chapter held a vigil Wednesday night in honor of Kirk.
FIU’s chapter said they have their own vigil scheduled for next week.
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