The State Department revoked at least six visas from foreigners who publicly celebrated the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk on social media, the department announced Tuesday.
The move has drawn criticism from free speech advocates and prompted a legal defense group to offer free assistance to those affected.
In a post on X, the State Department said it took action against individuals from Argentina, South Africa, Mexico, Brazil, Germany and Paraguay, sharing examples of social media posts celebrating Kirk’s killing during a university debate event in Utah last month.
“The United States has no obligation to host foreigners who wish death on Americans,” the department said. “The State Department continues to identify visa holders who celebrated the heinous assassination of Charlie Kirk.”
The department did not identify the visa holders by name or specify what type of visas were revoked.
The revocations followed earlier warnings from Secretary of State Marco Rubio that foreigners on visas praising Kirk’s death should “prepare to be deported.” A day after Kirk’s shooting, Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau instructed consular officials to monitor such comments on social media and identify their authors.
Hours after the announcement, immigration attorney Eric Lee, a co-founder of the Consular Accountability Project, wrote on social media that the legal defense organization would represent anyone whose visa was denied or revoked over “Charlie Kirk-related speech” pro bono.
Lee has previously defended foreign students and activists whose visas were revoked for political speech. He’s challenged the Trump administration’s visa restrictions targeting pro-Palestinian protesters across university campuses.
Former Barack Obama adviser David Axelrod criticized the administration’s actions on X, writing, “US revokes visas for 6 foreigners for derisive posthumous comments about Charlie Kirk–who was, ironically, a self-styled champion of free speech!”
Kirk was a prominent political voice in the conservative movement. He founded Turning Point USA, a group that mobilized young voters around right-wing causes and became a key player in President Donald Trump’s political movement. Known for his polarizing ideological debates on college campuses, he built a large social media following and developed close ties with Trump, Vice President JD Vance and other Republican leaders. He played a critical role in Trump’s reelection by bolstering his appeal to younger voters.
Kirk was shot and killed in September while speaking at a TPUSA event at Utah Valley University, sparking national debates over political violence and free speech.
The State Department’s announcement came shortly after Trump posthumously awarded Kirk with the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian award, on what would have been his 32nd birthday
