T
he last few days were marked first by the sharp crack of a gunshot – the one that killed Charlie Kirk, the young American influencer and staunch supporter of Donald Trump, on September 10. Then came the outcry from his supporters, rightly shocked by this brutal assassination. They were not the only ones stunned; we all were, witnessing yet again the American political stage plunged into mourning by a heinous murder.
I was also stunned when the European far right – always quick to call themselves patriots and usually so hostile to the symbols of globalization they routinely condemn – immediately campaigned for a tribute to Kirk. The escalation was swift: Why not award him the Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought, the French far-right party Reconquête suggested. Why not demand a minute of silence in the European Parliament's plenary session, asked a Swedish MEP, instantly backed by France's far-right Rassemblement National (RN). Why hold back and not adopt the slogan "Je suis Charlie" [a rallying cry after the 2015 terrorist attack on the French satirical weekly Charlie Hebdo], dared RN leader and MEP Jordan Bardella.
Subscribers only
Charlie Kirk hailed as a 'martyr' by Europe's far right
