Last week, we wrote from a place of heartbreak. Today, we write from a place of warning.
The public assassination of Charlie Kirk in Utah last week was not just a tragedy — it was another turn in a dangerous spiral of political violence in our country. As Utah Gov. Spencer Cox urged last week, we need an off-ramp — and fast. Without it, we risk deepening cycles of fear, blame and escalation — especially when people begin to feel morally justified in their outrage, believing that the other side “started it.”
How do we individually respond in this moment? Here are four concrete steps each of us can take to build that off-ramp:
1. Interrupt the ‘us vs. them’ story
Cycles of political violence thrive on “us vs. them” thinking in which “we” are righteous and “they” are dangerous. We have to resist the temptation to sort everyone into teams of good (us) vs. bad (them).
As part of this, we must refuse to blame entire groups for the actions of single individuals. With the death of Charlie Kirk in Utah as well as Melissa and Mark Hortman in Minnesota, it was not a group exacting violence. It was an individual influenced by extremist thinking who chose violence.
In addition, we can take time to consider our individual responses and reactions to the moment. Which voices are you listening to right now and which are you missing for a fuller understanding? How am I reacting to the “us vs. them” story as it unfolds — and are there ways I might be feeding and perpetuating it somehow?
2. Resist the urge to label
Social science shows that once we label someone — “radical,” “traitor,” “fascist” — our brains begin to filter out their humanity. The individual literally becomes less human to us.
And that makes it easier for our brains to justify contempt or even violence. In moments like this, we must choose language that invites us to see someone else as human as we are.
Empathy is not endorsement. Conversation is not consensus. It’s not about compromising your principles — it’s about staying human. The Golden Rule applies here: If you don’t want to be reduced to mere labels, don’t do the same to others.
3. Model moral courage
After the shooting last week, we saw public leaders like Gov. Cox call on us to look inside, find our “better angels,” and resist the temptations of escalation and revenge.
We need educators, faith leaders, influencers, elected officials and especially everyday citizens to echo this message in each of our spheres: Aggression is not strength. It takes much more strength and courage to treat people with whom we fundamentally disagree with dignity.
It is OK to be angry and upset. But find productive outlets that honor those feelings without perpetuating harm. In response to the tragic events of this week, a member of our coalition, Rebecca Bratsman, made this commitment on social media: “When people lean into violent language around politics, I will speak up. … We’re not using violence to enforce political beliefs.”
4. Gather together
We need spaces — physical and digital — where people can mourn together, reflect together and rebuild trust together. The peaceful vigils held around the country over the past few days have provided moments of healing for thousands of people.
Now is the time to turn our mourning, our fear, our anger into individual and collective action for good. The website we collectively launched last week, TurnToward.Us, shares 20-plus local, state and national gatherings in the coming weeks alone.
This is not about being nice. It’s not about forgetting or minimizing what happened. It’s about being brave. The spiral won’t stop on its own — individually, we have to choose the off-ramp.
Each of us, in Utah and beyond, can lead the way.
