By Tom Fowdy
A Martyr is defined as "a person who is killed or made to suffer because of their religious or other beliefs." Across all religions and ideologies, the idea of martyrdom, the concept of someone having died for fighting for a specific cause or belief system, is almost always glorified. Christianity after all, is built exclusively on the concept of martyrdom, teaching that Jesus Christ willingly died for the sins of the world. The Christian emphasis upon martyrdom was further consolidated in its early stages through the stories of early saints and believers choosing death in the face of persecution.
The famous 19th-century French painting "The Christian Martyrs' Last Prayer" by Jean-Léon Gérôme shows Christians praying earnestly in the pit of the Colosseum in Rome as a Lion enters. The discourse of martyrdom emphasizes ultimate sacrifice in the name of principle, faith, and belief of any kind, not just being a religious question, but one that extends into politics. When someone is glorified as a martyr, their name is often immortalised and they become a lasting symbol and representation of the given belief system, giving the individual greater reverence than when they were alive, and becoming a lasting motivation for those following that cause.
Of course, when someone is hailed as a "political martyr" by a given group or ideology, it does not mean that their cause is deemed "universally right" or respected, especially if the given cause is contested or controversial. For example, Irish Republicans absolutely hold Bobby Sands, who died of a self-imposed hunger strike during the Troubles, as a martyr, yet English people are unlikely to agree. Yet, this is part of the point about martyrdom, religious or political, it can only happen in extremely contentious and divided environments, precisely because it requires a belief system to face overwhelming persecution and opposition. Martyrdom isn't about consensus or civil disagreement; it is about someone dying in the name of a cause others are trying to erase.
Thus, it is no surprise that the untimely death of Charlie Kirk has transformed him into a martyr amongst American Conservatives, as liberals simultaneously mock, sneer and even celebrate his passing. It is fair to say when Charlie Kirk was alive, I did not take him seriously. I found him to be annoying, to put it mildly, with his views on many subjects to be misguided or even ignorant. I have vivid memories of how the early Turning Point graphics became a meme online, with good old English humour reimagining it as "Turning Point: Greggs" represented by obese, unhygienic, bald men. Yet, despite all that, I cannot say I ever "hated" Charlie Kirk and not in my wildest dreams could I have ever believed he deserved such a horrible fate.
Instead, when the murder happened, it was shock to my conscience. While liberals jeered and scorned, there was no doubt for me that what happened was completely unacceptable even to the point I felt sorry for him. It actually disturbs me to the core that some groups continue to rant on about the issues he supported, and thus insinuate he deserved it. I have always been in opposition, in every political incarnation of my life, to "aggressive, evangelised liberal self-righteousness" which absolutely believes it is fair game to destroy people's lives in the name of radical identity politics and dehumanise those they disagree with. The radical left is violent and intolerant, and it was a mistake for myself to once try and ally with it, even if I did so purely on contrarian grounds to American antagonism against China.
Overnight, Charlie Kirk was transformed from an annoying University activist, one who was recently poked fun at just weeks before on South Park, into a political martyr for American Conservatism, one that was swiftly glorified by the highest levels of government, further consolidating the toxified climate of US politics. This has ironically, gave his influence and legacy greater clout than it might have ever had otherwise. His supporters hail him as an icon of free speech, an opponent of cancel culture and radical on campus activism and a good family man, even as detractors state he is inherently evil, which is now par the course for anyone you disagree with in American politics.
Finally, while we should not forget that politically motivated assassinations in US politics are ubiquitous, the killing of Charlie Kirk and the "martyrdom" of his life subsequently constitute an epoch changing event which will further consolidate America's socially Conservative turn, and in the long term bring about the end of the "Obama Era Liberalism" that peaked in the late 2010s. However, for the meanwhile, the toxicity of American culture wars will continue, and I believe things will get worse before they get better. We live in a new era of ideological and identity-based conflict that has been structured by mass social media culture. Charlie Kirk was one of the biggest names to emerge from this era, he's now arguably its first martyr.
The views do not necessarily reflect those of DotDotNews.
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