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Stephen A. Smith condemns anyone celebrating Charlie Kirk's assassination, praises Yankees for tribute
By Jackson Thompson
Published September 11, 2025
ESPN host Stephen A. Smith spoke out against anyone openly celebrating the assassination of Charlie Kirk.
During an episode of his podcast Thursday, Smith aggressively condemned anyone celebrating Kirk's killing.
"I don't care what his political beliefs were. I don't care what he felt," Smith said, adding that he felt pain for Kirk and his family.
"That he's dead at the age of 31. That his wife is a widow. That his children are fatherless because his ideas and his beliefs differed from somebody else, apparently."
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"And then I’m going online, and I’m seeing people celebrating it!" he continued. "Shame! Shame on you!"
Smith also commended the New York Yankees for honoring Kirk Wednesday night ahead of a game against the Detroit Tigers. The Yankees held a moment of silence for Kirk and displayed an image of him on the stadium jumbotron.
"Props to the New York Yankees organization last night for having a moment of silence," Smith said. "We're not supposed to condone stuff like this. We're not supposed to say it's OK. I don't give a damn who you are, Black, White or anything in between!
"I hope the FBI and law enforcement catch this individual and do what needs to be done with him."
A transgender Team USA BMX cyclist made a series of social media posts Wednesday celebrating the assassination. Chelsea Wolfe, who was present for the U.S. women's BMX team at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021 as an alternate, made the celebratory posts on the athlete's Instagram story.
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Consequences have befallen others who have made controversial comments in the aftermath of Kirk's death.
MSNBC fired political analyst Matthew Dowd for suggesting "hateful" rhetoric from Kirk led to his own assassination, Fox News Digital previously reported.
The Carolina Panthers fired Charlie Rock, a member of the team’s communications department, after social media posts linked to Rock appeared to show him questioning why people were sad that Kirk had been shot and killed.
The song "Protect Ya Neck" from the Wu-Tang Clan was also shared.
"The views expressed by our employees are their own and do not represent those of the Carolina Panthers," the team said in a statement posted to social media. "We do not condone violence of any kind. We are taking this matter very seriously and have accordingly addressed it with the individual."
Kirk, the founder of Turning Point USA, was struck by a single bullet around 12:20 p.m. on the campus of Utah Valley University in Orem Wednesday. The 31-year-old was surrounded by mostly college students as his event was getting underway.
Authorities have yet to publicly identify a suspect in the shooting. However, officials offered more details about the person they’re after at a news conference Thursday morning.
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Charlie Kirk and Stephen A. Smith (Getty Images)
FBI Special Agent in Charge Robert Bohls and Utah Department of Public Safety Commissioner Beau Mason said they obtained "good video footage" of the shooter while he was on the Utah Valley University campus.
Investigators added that they believe the suspect to be "of college age."
The investigation into the assassination of Kirk is still ongoing.
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https://www.foxnews.com/sports/stephen-a-smith-condemns-anyone-celebrating-charlie-kirks-assassination-praises-yankees-tribute