Khloé Kardashian faced a wave of criticism Thursday after she liked and reacted to social-media posts about Charlie Kirk following the conservative activist's shooting death Wednesday at Utah Valley University.
Screenshots circulated online showing the 41-year-old reality star had liked a post from the Pray.com Instagram account that included footage of Kirk discussing his Christian faith, and had commented with three praying-hand emojis. Kardashian also reposted an Instagram Story containing a widely shared, seemingly nonpartisan message lamenting the public's numbness toward acts of violence.
Critics preserved and posted the screenshots on platforms including Reddit and Twitter, and many expressed anger that Kardashian appeared to respond approvingly to material about Kirk instead of focusing on the shooting itself. One Reddit commenter wrote, "This is the worst thing she's ever done in my eyes fr. Yuck!!" Another user predicted any explanation would be framed as "politics aside, he was a husband and a father." Several users referenced Kardashian's history of sharing Bible verses on social media as context for her response.
The backlash centered on Kirk's political views and public statements. Kirk, 31, was a leading conservative commentator known for anti-abortion, anti-immigrant and anti-transgender positions and vocal support for gun rights. Critics cited a 2023 speech in which he said that some gun deaths were "worth it" to preserve the Second Amendment. Multiple social-media users labeled Kirk a white supremacist based on past comments they described as offensive toward Black people; those characterizations were expressed by commenters online and not independently verified by this outlet.
Many critics also called attention to Kardashian's family composition. Some users noted she has biracial children and questioned why she would engage with posts about a figure they described as holding racist views. "Empathizing with a white supremacist when you have Black children is a different kind of evil," one social-media comment read.
Kirk was shot in the neck by a gunman positioned on the roof of a nearby building at the Utah Valley University campus. The gunman remained at large as of Thursday, and federal officials were involved in the response. FBI Director Kash Patel traveled to Utah amid criticism of the bureau's pace in the search and for his decision a month earlier to fire a special agent in Utah who critics said would have led the manhunt.
Kardashian did not publicly address the criticism as of Thursday night. The Daily Mail and other outlets reported attempts to contact her representatives for comment; a response had not been posted at the time of publication.
The episode revived wider debates about celebrity engagement with political figures and movements on social media. Some former fans and followers expressed surprise and disappointment, while others defended Kardashian's right to private responses on personal accounts. The online reaction underscores how quickly celebrity actions can reignite discussion of polarizing public figures and past statements.