30 Minutes ago in Washington, Erika Kirk was confirmed as…See more
Teens Revolt Over Erika Kirk’s Visit To Their High School
Erika is turning her attention to high school students after hardly anyone at a state university bothered to show up to her event.
Students at a Phoenix high school are revolting against a planned visit from right-wing personality Erika Kirk.
After a sparsely attended Turning Point USA campus event, Erika is now turning her attention to high schoolers, with a planned event at Pinnacle High School in north Phoenix next week.But she is already not being met with open arms by students and parents.
“I don’t know why she’s coming here, to be honest,” Francisco Sanchez, a senior at Pinnacle High School, told 12 News Phoenix. “I think the topics that she talks about are too extremist for a school. I think there are better representatives we can have.”
Erika pictured at Charlie's funeral, which was held in Arizona at the Arizona Cardinals stadium.Daniel Cole/REUTERS
“It’s a little crazy because I would never have expected someone like her to show up at a high school,” high school senior Kasandra Acosta told the outlet.
“I’m pretty shocked. Honestly, I’m surprised it’s even happening,” she added.
Parents of students enrolled at the school told The Arizona Republic they were concerned about security--especially after earlier this week, Erika, who became CEO of her late husband Charlie Kirk’s TPUSA organization after his September killing, skipped an event at the University of Georgia over safety concerns.
“It’s not just your average citizen coming over to speak to the club. She brings politics with her, she brings division with her, just because everybody in America is divided,” Bobbe Noland, a parent of a Pinnacle student, told the Republic.
Vance, the second in line to the presidency, still attended the event earlier this week, despite security concerns with Erika.Jonathan Ernst/REUTERS
School officials told parents this week that students would see an increased security presence on campus during the event, prompting some parents to also demand that the school move her visit to after-school hours.
Phoenix Police told 12 News that since Erika’s visit was a private event, the responsibility for securing it rests with the event organizers and must be coordinated with the school district.
“We regularly work with community partners to support public safety during gatherings. As with any event, our officers will continue to monitor activity, review available information, and adjust deployment strategies as needed to help ensure a safe environment for students, staff, and the surrounding community,” a police spokesperson said in a statement.
Her speaking appearance has been organized with the school’s Club America chapter, a TPUSA-affiliated organization. The right-wing nonprofit is headquartered in Phoenix, and she and Charlie lived in the nearby affluent suburb of Scottsdale for many years.
The Daily Beast reached out to TPUSA for comment on the controversy.
Students at Pinnacle High School are not too enthused by Erika's visit to campus next week.Daniel Cole/REUTERS
It’s not the first time she and her late husband stirred up controversy in Arizona’s public schools.
In 2021, Erika and Charlie raged against the Scottsdale Unified School District’s mask policy during the COVID-19 pandemic at a school board meeting. At the time, the couple did not have any children yet.
During the meeting, Charlie called the mask policy a “self-righteous measure” enacted to “abuse the children.”
“There is zero evidence to show that children are at a significant risk of catching or dying from the Chinese coronavirus,” he claimed, adding, “You have awoke a sleeping giant. I hope you enjoy your masked, short-term future here while it still lasts.”
The Kirks had welcomed their first child in August 2022, a year after they complained to a school board about its COVID policies.Samuel Corum/Getty Images
Erika, who grew up in Scottsdale but attended private Catholic school, went as far as to demand a moment of silence at the board meeting for “the kids who will end up committing suicide this upcoming school year in 2021 and 2022 because of your reckless and ego-centered leadership and lack thereof.”
“As Christians, we are told to pray for our leaders and that is what I will do every day,” she said. “May God have mercy on your souls for everything you guys are doing in this leadership position.”One Scottsdale parent called them out, pointing out that they didn’t even have children who were enrolled in the city’s public schools.
“While the agitators from outside our district would have you think that masks mandates are only in place at liberal public schools, the list of private and parochial schools also enacting mask mandates is far from short,” the parent said. “I applaud SUSD’s governing board.”
At 20, Barron Trump finally CONFIRMS what everyone had long suspected…👇👇👇.
‘You’ve Never Been Touched?’ The Mafia Boss Froze… Then Made a Promise No One Expected
CHAPTER 1 — The Mafia Boss Who Promised to Protect Me
“You’ve never been touched?”
Nathan Cross’s voice was barely above a whisper.
But the question carried more weight than any threat.
He stood frozen above me, his usual cold expression completely gone, as if my answer had reached a place inside him that no one had ever touched before.
My eyes filled with tears.
I looked away, ashamed of a truth I had spent my entire life hiding.
“Never.”
For a moment, the most feared man in Boston said nothing.
Then something changed.
The man everyone called ruthless, merciless, and untouchable…
looked at me like he had just made a promise he would rather die than break.
And I had no idea that one simple word had just changed my entire life.
The abandoned gallery smelled like old paint, cracked wood, and forgotten memories.
Dust floated through the golden light pouring from the broken windows above.
My camera hung around my neck as I carefully moved between damaged marble pillars, capturing images of a building the city had already decided to forget.
I was working on a historical preservation project for the public library.
My job was simple.
Photograph old places before they disappeared.
Before developers tore them down.
Before history became another empty space filled with glass and steel.
I had always loved silence.
Silence never judged me.
Silence never asked questions.
But that afternoon…
silence betrayed me.
The sound came from below.
Voices.
Low.
Angry.
Dangerously calm.
I froze with my finger resting on the camera button.
The words traveled up the rusted staircase.
“You owe Cross.”
A man’s voice.
Sharp.
Impatient.
“Pay what you owe… or you already know what happens next.”
My breathing stopped.
I should have left.
I should have walked away.
But curiosity held me still.
Then—
A gunshot.
Not loud.
Not dramatic.
Just a small, terrifying sound.
A muffled pop.
Then the heavy impact of a body hitting the concrete floor.
My hand flew over my mouth.
I swallowed the scream before it escaped.
My stomach twisted.
My entire body screamed one thing.
Run.
But my legs refused to move.
“Clean this up.”
Another voice answered.
And somehow…
that voice scared me more than the gunshot.
Because there was no anger.
No panic.
No hesitation.
Only control.
Cold.
Absolute.
The footsteps began climbing toward me.
Slow.
Steady.
Coming closer.
My mind begged me to hide.
My body refused.
Then he appeared.
He stepped out of the shadows like the darkness itself had created him.
Tall.
Broad-shouldered.
Perfectly dressed in a black suit.
Except for the dark stains across the fabric.
Blood.
Not his.
That detail terrified me more.
Because a man who walked away from blood without fear was more dangerous than the man bleeding.
The ruined gallery suddenly felt too small.
His presence filled every corner.
Then his eyes found mine.
Dark.
Sharp.
Unreadable.
The entire world seemed to stop.
“You saw everything.”
It wasn't a question.
It was a fact.
My hands shook.
The camera strap trembled against my chest.
“I—I didn’t see anything.”
My voice cracked.
“I swear.”
He walked toward me.
One step.
Then another.
Every movement was controlled.
Calculated.
Like a predator that already knew its prey had nowhere to escape.
He stopped in front of me.
Close enough that I could see the faint blood mark near his white collar.
A small smile appeared.
Not kind.
Not warm.
“You’re a terrible liar.”
My heartbeat raced.
“Please.”
I forced the words out.
“I’m just a photographer. I won’t tell anyone.”
His eyes dropped to my camera.
Before I could react, he reached forward.
I flinched.
But he only removed the camera gently from around my neck.
That somehow frightened me more.
A violent man was easy to understand.
A careful one was not.
He examined it briefly.
Then looked back at me.
“What’s your name?”
“Claire.”
My voice was barely audible.
His gaze sharpened.
“Claire Bennett.”
My breath caught.
“How do you know that?”
A faint shadow crossed his face.
“I know everyone who enters my territory.”
And suddenly…
everything made sense.
This wasn't just some criminal.
This was Nathan Cross.
The name whispered throughout Boston.
The man whose enemies disappeared.
The man whose businesses looked perfectly legal while everyone knew there were darker things beneath the surface.
The man people feared saying too loudly.
Nathan Cross.
The mafia king of Boston.
“You’re coming with me.”
The command was calm.
“No.”
The answer escaped before I could think.
His eyes narrowed slightly.
I stepped backward.
Too quickly.
My heel caught on broken tile.
I fell.
Pain shot through my body.
The camera slipped from his hand.
But before my head hit the floor, Nathan moved.
Fast.
His hand caught my wrist.
The contact lasted less than a second.
But my entire body froze.
“Don’t touch me.”
The words came out like a panic.
Nathan stopped.
Completely.
The anger I expected never came.
Instead…
something changed in his expression.
Recognition.
Confusion.
Pain.
Slowly, he released me.
Then he lowered himself to the floor, keeping a careful distance between us.
“Who hurt you?”
I shook my head.
“No one.”
But the tears came anyway.
“I just…”
My voice broke.
“I’ve never been touched like that.”
The room went silent.
Nathan stared at me.
His voice was quieter now.
“Never?”
I looked down.
Humiliation burned through me.
“Never.”
Something inside Nathan Cross shifted.
The man who had built an empire through fear.
The man who made enemies disappear.
The man nobody dared challenge…
looked at me as if my pain was something he could feel himself.
Then he spoke.
Slowly.
Carefully.
“No one touches you without your permission.”
His eyes hardened.
“Not my men.”
A pause.
“Not my enemies.”
Another pause.
“Not me.”
Before I could respond, footsteps rushed from the staircase.
A man appeared, breathing heavily.
“Boss.”
Nathan immediately stood.
The man's expression was serious.
“Someone else saw her enter the building.”
He looked at me.
“They know she's here.”
A dangerous silence followed.
Nathan's entire demeanor changed.
The warmth disappeared.
The mafia boss returned.
But this time…
he wasn't looking at me like a witness.
He was looking at me like someone he had decided to protect.
His voice became cold.
“Lock every door.”
The man nodded.
Nathan looked toward the exits.
Then back at me.
And I realized something terrifying.
The most dangerous man in Boston had just placed himself between me and the world.
Not because he needed me.
Not because I belonged to him.
But because he had made a promise.
And Nathan Cross was a man who never broke his promises.
