Campus look-alike contests tied to Kirk assassination anniversary spread to at least eight universities
On campuses from Washington to Maine, anonymous flyers and social-media posts advertising events tied to the first anniversary of a high-profile political assassination circulated across at least eight universities on September…
Key takeaways
- Anonymous flyers and social-media posts advertising Charlie Kirk look-alike and anniversary events circulated across at least eight universities on September 10, 2025.
- The events tied to the first anniversary of the assassination of Charlie Kirk, the 31-year-old Turning Point USA founder killed at Utah Valley University on September 10, 2025.
- The events appeared with no apparent central coordination, spreading via anonymous platforms like Fizz and Yik Yak and physical flyers.
- Every institution contacted by Fox News Digital distanced itself from the events and said no recognized or registered student group was organizing them.
- Some flyers and posts contained offensive content, including anti-Kirk phrases at Nebraska-Lincoln and a message expressing hope that President Donald Trump would die attributed to UNC Charlotte community members.
On campuses from Washington to Maine, anonymous flyers and social-media posts advertising events tied to the first anniversary of a high-profile political assassination circulated across at least eight universities on September 10, drawing swift disavowals from administrators at each institution. Charlie Kirk, the 31-year-old founder of Turning Point USA, was killed at Utah Valley University on September 10, 2025, while speaking during his American Comeback Tour.
The events and how they spread
The pattern emerged across institutions with no apparent central coordination. At Georgetown University, a Kirk look-alike contest drew thousands of upvotes on Fizz, an anonymous social-media platform popular with students there. At the University of South Carolina, a similar event called "Kirkiversary" was advertised on Yik Yak for Greene Street outside Russell House at 7 p.m., with a fifty-dollar prize. At New York University, an anonymous Yik Yak post advertised a "KIRKAVERSARY C. KIRK LOOKALIKE CONTEST" at Washington Square Park at 10 p.m., offering five dollars and instructing attendees to bring their own drinks.
At the Rochester Institute of Technology, flyers advertised a "CHARLIE KIRK LOOKALIKE COMPETITION" at the Kate Gleason dorm quad at 1 p.m. on September 10, with a prize listed as "$10 + FAME + TROPHY." A separate RIT flyer promoted a "Twerk for Kirk" competition with a ten-dollar entry fee. At the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, flyers bearing Kirk's image and the phrases "REST IN PISS FOREVER MISS" and "THE MASTERBAITER" were taped to bus stops on campus. The University of Tennessee-Knoxville reported "Kirkaversery" flyers declaring "WE WILL CELEBRATE THE FIRST NEW YEAR AK (AFTER KIRK)." Screenshots attributed to members of the UNC Charlotte community, circulated on X by the account Libs of TikTok, appeared to show individuals discussing how to mark the anniversary; one message expressed hope that President Donald Trump would die.
Institutional responses
Every institution contacted by Fox News Digital distanced itself from the events. NYU's senior vice president for university relations and public affairs, Wiley Norvell, said no recognized student group was organizing any such event and that the university was reporting the posts for misusing its name, adding that it strongly condemns any elevation of political violence. Georgetown said it had seen no activity on campus related to the posts. The University of South Carolina said it had no record of any registered student organization planning an event and that no university resources would be used to support one. The University of Maine noted that Yik Yak is an independent third-party platform the university neither operates nor controls, and that a Turning Point USA chapter event held on campus Wednesday evening concluded without incident. The University of Nebraska-Lincoln said there was no indication that anyone affiliated with the university was responsible for the bus-stop flyers. Rochester Institute of Technology and Turning Point USA had not responded to requests for comment as of publication.
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