In the aftermath of Charlie Kirk’s shooting, Black and Brown people should have been the last thing on everyone’s mind, but instead, they became targets of political anger and racism.
When it was revealed that Kirk’s murder suspect was Tyler Robinson, a white male from Utah with a conservative background, the narrative surrounding the murder quickly shifted from vengeance to empathy.
South Carolina Representative Nancy Mace followed her X post about wanting to “bring back the death penalty” with a new one, stating that she knew “Charlie Kirk would want us to pray for such an evil, lost individual like Tyler Robinson to find Jesus Christ.”
Then, Utah Governor Spencer J. Cox told the public that he had hoped that Kirk’s shooter “wouldn’t be one of us,” and it would be easier if it was “somebody who drove from another state or came from another country.”
In this address, Cox said the quiet part out loud, which is that some of the conservative politicians found it easier to hurt people who don’t look like or identify politically as them.
This belief was further illustrated by another surprising event that followed. A day after Kirk’s murder, at least eight HBCUs in five states went into lockdown after receiving threats.
“I am going to shoot every nigger I see at the Baton Rouge SU campus for your fake HBCU in the short amount of time before every nigger defending pigs comes to kill me,” an unnamed person wrote in a viral threat addressing the Baton Rouge HBCU, Southern University.
The message referenced the death of Iryna Zarutska, which happened on August 22. Zarutska, a Ukrainian woman, was fatally stabbed by a Black homeless man on a Charlotte light rail. Since the news of the murder broke, the incident has been heavily discussed on conservative platforms and considered a “flashpoint” as the Trump Administration has vowed to crack down on city crime.
Other HBCUs haven’t revealed the nature of their threats, but in a time of heightened anxiety, it’s clear that the Black community was the target of displaced right-wing anger.
Winston Salem State University student Ryann Samuels says that students at her HBCU were confused by the death threats after Kirk’s murder, especially since many HBCU students have stayed out of politics post-election.
“I think HBCU students and Black students in particular really did a lot of showing up when it was time for the election, and just from everything that has happened since, not a lot of students have really been feeling moved to get very politically active just because we saw how that played out for us,” Samuels said.
Since the 2025 presidential election, the “not our problem” mindset has grown significantly within the Black community, with many opting for attending Trail Ride festivities this summer over the “No Kings protest,” and people sharing on social media how they’ve divested from political activism.
Despite this mindset, the effects of racism from politicians continues to hit minority groups, and for some, it’s harder to ignore
Georney Miller, a student at Howard University, has seen her life upended due to the National Guard’s takeover of Washington D.C.
In August, President Trump assumed control of D.C.’s police department and activated the city’s National Guard. He says the purpose of the extreme measure is to crack down on crime caused by gangs, “bloodthirsty criminals,” “mobs of wild youth,” drug addicts and unhoused people.
While Trump called his actions “liberation day” for D.C., locals have been restricted by the increased police presence.
“There are streets that we normally would go to, like U Street or deeper on Georgia Ave, which is right on the border of my school property,” Miller said. “We don’t really go there anymore.”
Miller and her peers were told by their school to carry ID with them at all times in case of an emergency and avoid areas with strict policing. They also have reported being watched by the police in a way that feels uneasy.
“There was one day where me and my friends were walking home, and as we were walking on the sidewalk, a police officer pulls up next to us. They just sat, looked at us for a bit and then drove off. We were obviously scared because what was that?” Miller said.
The Black community, including HBCU students, should not have to feel the brunt of choices they did not make. However, in each political issue the country faces, racism can’t help but make an appearance.
In a world where the Black community seems to be the country’s scapegoat, it begs to ask the question, “Can we really be unbothered in a time like this?”
