Abbie Chatfield, an Australian reality television alumna and podcaster, repeated harsh criticisms of US conservative commentator Charlie Kirk in an Instagram video on Wednesday, even after saying earlier she was living in fear following a post she made in the hours after his killing.
In the video Chatfield said she "hates" Kirk and listed a series of accusations against him, calling him "racist, homophobic, transphobic, misogynistic [and] Islamophobic" and describing him as "anti-choice." She added that "no one should die for what they have to say" while saying she still regarded his public positions as harmful. The social-media clip also included footage of Chatfield appearing to cry and yelling an expletive-laden phrase directed at Kirk.
The exchange follows a widely reported shooting last week at a rally at Utah Valley University in which Kirk, 31 and a father of two, was shot in the neck and died soon after. Authorities said an alleged gunman was seen on camera running across a rooftop in the moments after the shooting. The killing drew condemnation and expressions of shock from across the political spectrum. Utah's governor described the attack as a "political assassination," and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said Kirk's death was "horrific" and that "there is no place for violence."
Chatfield said in an Instagram statement posted on Friday that she had been inundated with death threats after sharing views about Kirk following the shooting and that some messages included her home address. She wrote that the torrent of messages had triggered a "severe mental health episode" and left her "in fear," adding that she was "not strong enough right now to make any comment." In subsequent posts and the Wednesday video she resumed criticizing Kirk and mocked those who had sent her threats.
Chatfield, 30, rose to public attention in Australia on reality television and has built a profile as a podcaster and frequent social-media commentator. Her early posts after Kirk's death warned that the killing could escalate tensions and predicted that Kirk would be "martyred," a consequence she said could deepen political divisions and increase violence.
Kirk, who led a prominent conservative youth organization and was a frequent media figure in the United States, drew both support and criticism for his views and activism. His death has prompted debate in the US and abroad about political rhetoric, public safety at political events and the potential for violence to inflame partisan divisions.
The reports of threats against Chatfield came as law-enforcement and university officials continued to investigate the circumstances of the shooting at Utah Valley University. Authorities have not publicly attributed motive beyond statements from state officials characterizing the killing as politically charged. Media coverage of Chatfield's reaction and of the threats against her has underscored the wider tensions that have followed the attack and the intense attention paid to high-profile commentators on both sides of the political spectrum.
Chatfield's remarks and the threats she reported underscore the fraught atmosphere around the shooting and the broader conversation about accountability, safety and the limits of public speech. Both her statements and the response to them were circulated widely on social media and in news coverage, as officials in the United States and elsewhere called for restraint and condemned violence.
As investigations and public discussions continue, Chatfield said she was coping with the impact of the threats on her mental health while maintaining her criticisms of Kirk's record and public positions.