Tensions erupted in Times Square on Thursday as far-right activist Jake Lang led a march marking the first anniversary of the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk.
Videos circulating from the scene showed confrontations between participants in the march and counterprotesters, with shouting, pushing and physical fights breaking out in the middle of one of New York City’s busiest public spaces. At this stage, details about arrests or injuries from the Times Square event remain limited.
The march took place exactly one year after Kirk was fatally shot on September 10, 2025, while speaking at Utah Valley University in Orem, Utah. Kirk, 31, was the founder of Turning Point USA and one of the most influential conservative youth organizers in the country.
His death continues to have a major political impact. Turning Point USA has expanded significantly since the assassination, while Republican leaders and conservative groups across the country are holding memorial events this week. President Donald Trump also commemorated Kirk during the Republican midterm convention, describing him as an important figure in the conservative movement.
Jake Lang, who led the Times Square march, is a controversial far-right activist and a participant in the January 6, 2021 Capitol riot who later received a presidential pardon. He has organized several confrontational demonstrations in New York City this year, including an anti-Islam protest near Gracie Mansion in March that drew a much larger counterprotest and ended in violence and arrests.
Thursday’s clashes show how Kirk’s legacy remains deeply polarizing one year after his death. To supporters, he remains a symbol of conservative youth activism and free-speech politics. To critics, his movement represented a highly confrontational style of political organizing.
What began as an anniversary march in Times Square quickly became another example of how political demonstrations in the United States can turn into direct confrontation between rival groups.
Sources: Reuters; FBI; CBS New York; The Washington Post
By NJ RADAR Team