UNCW draws nationwide coverage over Kirk memorial incident

A Charlie Kirk memorial painted on UNC Wilmington’s spirit rock was defaced with buckets of paint by students, sparking national coverage. 

The rock, painted Monday afternoon, was dedicated to Charlie Kirk, who was murdered on Aug. 10 at Utah Valley University. That evening, the UNCW chapters of Turning Point USA and College Republicans held a candlelight vigil that drew more than 1,500 attendees. 

This afternoon at UNCW, the so-called ‘tolerant’ left painted over a beautiful mural honoring Charlie Kirk. In the video, one girl can be heard bragging that ‘all her friends at Chapel Hill will be proud.’ Disgusting @campusreform @RyanAFournier @libsoftiktok pic.twitter.com/ZKqOXvdjjs

— Nick Craig (@nicholasmcraig) September 16, 2025

Reagan Faulkner, president of UNCW’s College Republicans, described the vigil as beautiful. 

“The mood on campus the night of the vigil was amazing! It was filled with respect and honor for Charlie,” Faulkner told Carolina Journal. “People were praising God and placing memorabilia at the memorial at the bottom of the amphitheater. It was so beautiful.” 

Although the spirit rock is painted frequently, the tradition has always been that it should remain untouched for 24 hours after each painting. 

“Out of courtesy, RSOs and UNCW students, faculty, and staff are encouraged to allow messages to remain on the rocks for 24 hours before painting over them,” reads UNCW’s 02.360 Policy On Displays. “It is recommended when painting a spirit rock to include at the base of the rock the date and time of the newest message.  This enables others to honor the courtesy of waiting at least 24 hours before spraying over previous messages, though the university does not monitor such compliance.”

On the night of the vigil, students stayed up through the night to guard Kirk’s mural after left-wing groups on campus threatened to deface it. Faulkner said she was up all night at the mural. 

“I was up for 40 hours because of it. I was disappointed that it came to that and upset knowing that they had no plan for what they wanted to replace the memorial,” said Faulkner. “The artist and CR/TPUSA members spent over 8 hours creating it, and to know it was going to be ruined and made ugly was just upsetting.” 

On Tuesday afternoon, a video surfaced on social media showing several students shoving past a prayer group at the rock and dumping buckets of paint over the Kirk memorial. 

Faulkner noted how disappointing it was to see students on campus act this way and not be open to civil dialogue. 

“We shouldn’t have had to defend it, and seeing those innocent members get covered in paint was extremely sad to watch. I couldn’t believe something like this could happen at UNCW,” Faulkner expressed. “We are all praying for those who ruined the painting and all the people who were mean that night. I just wish they could have a dialogue and talk to us instead of calling us Nazis, pedophiles, fascists, and morons.” 

Woody White, who sits on the UNC Board of Governors, took to social media to express his frustration with the situation. 

“For too long on many American campuses, left-wing activists were emboldened by weak and feckless leadership that allowed one-sided conversation to own public spaces, squelch and censor opposing points of view, and rule in a quasi-fiefdom form without much competition,” wrote White. “Conservative students feared reputational damage for expressing themselves, feared receiving poor grades from liberal professors if they chose to speak up in class, and in some cases, feared for their safety as more and more militant students said it was ok to commit violence over political disagreements.” 

UNCW officials, however, told WECT News, “The UNCW spirit rock is not a memorial. It is a platform for freedom of expression. Students typically paint the rock multiple times per week. Out of courtesy, students are asked to leave artwork for at least 24 hours before repainting, but no policy requires this.”

“UNCW draws nationwide coverage over Kirk memorial incident” was originally published on www.carolinajournal.com.