"The day before right-wing activist and Turning Point USA Co-Founder Charlie Kirk was assassinated on September 10, 2025, he texted the following to civil rights advocate and CNN host Van Jones: "Hey, Van, I mean it, I'd love to have you on my show to have a respectful conversation about crime and race. I would be a gentleman as I know you would be as well. We can disagree about the issues agreeably.""
"The First Amendment does not include the phrase "hate speech" or any of the other forms Kirk mentioned. It instead holds that "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.""
"The U.S. Supreme Court is responsible for upholding the Constitution, and therefore the First Amendment, through its power of judicial review. It can declare laws and executive actions unconstitutional. It is also the guardian and interpreter of the nation's founding document. The Supreme Court over the decades has consistently held that speech cannot be prohibited simply because it is considered offensive, repugnant, or hateful by anyone."
Charlie Kirk sent a conciliatory text to Van Jones the day before his assassination, inviting a respectful conversation about crime and race. Kirk previously tweeted that legally defined hate speech does not exist in America and that all speech, however ugly or evil, is protected by the First Amendment. The First Amendment contains no explicit "hate speech" exception and instead prohibits Congress from abridging freedom of speech, press, assembly, and petition. Speech is interpreted broadly to cover spoken and written words and symbolic acts. The Supreme Court has consistently held that offensive or hateful speech cannot be prohibited solely for being offensive.
Read at San Francisco Bay Times
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