To those who don't agree with Charlie, and may even find his views intolerable, I challenge you to reconsider his message in light of his views on sports..
by Adam Slocum
September 29, 2025
Most NFL teams, including the Dallas Cowboys, honored Charlie Kirk after his untimely death three weeks ago. (FOX News)
To those of you who don’t like or appreciate what Charlie stood for, I don’t think you truly understood his message. You may have heard things out of context and assumed he was against certain things that you believe in passionately. For example, National Sports Museum’s motto is:
Advance Social Justice.
Empower Equity and Inclusion.
Inspire Personal Excellence.
Unite Us a Nation.
You may look at our motto and think the first two contradict what Charlie Kirk vehemently believed, but Charlie was not against the concept of social justice or equality; he was only against the way these ideas have been politicized to justify quotas, affirmative action, and other mechanisms that ultimately detract from fair play.
Charlie Kirk was all about creating a color-blind, meritocratic society where hard work was the differentiator. Athletics is the closest manifestation of a just, egalitarian social contract that we have in human existence.
"That idea of meritocracy, of clear rules and fair competition is something I consistently championed. The integrity of sports—its ability to objectively identify and celebrate the best—was a lesson we can all learn from." - Charlie Kirk
His own background involved playing several sports competitively, especially as a multi-sport high school athlete and basketball captain. These early athletic experiences fostered his appreciation for the teamwork and commitment that was required, shaping his view of sports as a microcosm for what American society should aspire to become.
Charlie Kirk truly loved sports because they brought people together across societal divides, instilling unity, teamwork, and the values of dedication and resilience that he admired throughout his life. Above all, he believed in the power of sports to unite people by engaging diverse individuals to focus on shared goals.
He considered sports to be an arena where dedication (hard work) and teamwork (unity) are valued above all else. He regularly reiterated that sports teach important life lessons such as resilience, dedication, and collaboration, values he saw as fundamental to American character.
“One of the remarkable aspects of sports is their capacity to act as a great equalizer. Factors such as race, gender, sexual orientation, and financial status become insignificant once you step onto the playing field. What truly counts are your abilities, tenacity, and capacity to collaborate with others.” - Charlie Kirk
In addition, he regarded sports as a way for communities to come together, particularly during times of crisis, and often referred to the importance of athletic events in fostering national pride and personal and communal excellence.
“In our most challenging and chaotic moments, sports have often served as a balm for our collective spirit. They provide solace and a sense of togetherness, representing one of the few arenas where we can find shared understanding among our fellow Americans." - Charlie Kirk
It’s abundantly clear that Charlie Kirk would have been in favor of the National Sports Museum’s mission to inspire personal excellence, including virtues like resilience and dedication. He also would have appreciated its mission to bridge divides between people of different backgrounds and unite us as a nation. He also celebrated sports as a meritocracy where achievement transcends politics, beliefs, and backgrounds, which is what NSM means by advancing social justice and empowering equity and inclusion.
So, it really is a matter of semantics: Charlie Kirk and the National Sports Museum both celebrate what is great about America, as embodied by our collective passion for sports, which represent our steadfast appreciation for equality, freedom to pursue our dreams to the fullest, and a willingness to work together toward a common goal.
We are working toward a common goal of launching the National Sports Museum by 2030, where we will embody Charlie Kirk’s spirit throughout the halls of this attraction-museum as we celebrate the transformative power of sports to unite all of us around the goals of personal excellence, national solidarity, and impartial meritocracy.
NATIONAL SPORTS MUSEUM IN NYC
The National Sports Museum will celebrate sports’ profound impact on our national identity and pay tribute to athletes, brands, leagues, and teams who use their platform as leaders to effect meaningful change. Exhibits will include “Sports as Social Change”, “Sports as Cultural Identity”, “Sports as the Pursuit of Excellence”, and “Sports PLUS (Personal Learning Using Sports)”, along with an Immersion Theater and Interactive Sports Entertainment & Training facility.
We're developing an attraction-museum focused on education through sports. By using the latest interactive technologies we will bring sports history to life, viewing it all through a lens of social and cultural themes that illuminate the transcendent power of sports to advance, empower, inspire, and unite. We intend to align with other like-minded non-profits, athletes, the sports industry, corporate sponsors, and the city of New York to create a special and enduring cultural institution.
We welcome your feedback at Contact@NationalSportsMuseum.org.
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