The New Daily quietly removed an opinion essay over the weekend after its author argued she could not mourn conservative activist Charlie Kirk following his fatal shooting.
Former Guardian political reporter Amy Remeikis wrote the piece, published under the headline "I am sorry Charlie Kirk is dead, but I cannot mourn him. This is why," in which she expressed limited compassion for Kirk's death but said she could not grieve him because of his public record and the harms she attributed to his politics. The article was later taken down from The New Daily's website; the publisher, owned by Industry Super Holdings, did not provide an explanation for the removal.
In the essay, Remeikis wrote that Kirk, 31, "up until his final breath... [was] continuing his harmful grift that has seen trans-people demonised across the world," and said, "sadly, Charlie Kirk was killed in the America he wanted." She described him as "a far-right bobblehead who terrorised anyone he deemed a threat," accused him of promoting misinformation, and criticised public expressions of grief that, she said, overlooked the impact of his rhetoric.
Kirk was fatally shot on Sept. 10 while speaking at a university event in Utah. He was a co-founder of Turning Point USA and a prominent campus conservative activist. Supporters left flowers, balloons and notes at a memorial outside Turning Point USA headquarters following his death.
Remeikis acknowledged the controversy on X, saying the essay was "making some waves," and republished the piece on her Substack page after it was removed from The New Daily. In the removed essay she wrote that she felt "compassion at the loss of a life" but added, "Will I mourn him? No. I mourn for the people suffering in the world he helped create and held gloating dominion over." She also criticised figures who she said publicly lauded Kirk, naming Australia's ambassador to the United States, Kevin Rudd, among those whose tributes she said overlooked what she characterised as Kirk's role in "demonising trans people."
The essay's removal drew further attention amid a wider barrage of online commentary about Kirk's death. Social media postings and opinion pieces around the world debated appropriate reactions to political violence and the ethics of public mourning for polarising figures.
Among those prompting additional controversy was Hannah Ferguson, co‑founder and chief executive of Cheek Media Co., who wrote on Instagram that while she was not "happy" about the shooting, "Is violence sometimes necessary? Yes." Ferguson's post and commentary were widely criticised for seeming to condone or rationalise violence.
Independent MP Zali Steggall of Warringah in Sydney initially "liked" Ferguson's post, drawing criticism. Steggall told the Daily Mail she did not condone the shooting and that her initial like was intended to acknowledge a broader conversation about political polarisation driven by online algorithms and sensational media. She said she later unliked the post and that liking a social media item should not be taken as endorsement of everything in it.
The New Daily did not respond to requests for comment about why the essay was removed or whether the site received complaints. Remeikis’s republication on Substack preserves the text she had prepared for The New Daily and remains publicly accessible there.
Kirk’s death has prompted official statements, public memorials and intensified debate over the intersections of rhetoric, political violence and public commemoration. Law enforcement agencies have not released details establishing a motive for the shooting; investigations into the incident remain ongoing.