More than 500 nonprofit organizations are pushing back hard against President Donald Trump, accusing his administration of exploiting the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk to go after liberal groups. In an open letter released Thursday and first shared with CNN, the groups warned that the government is using Kirk’s killing as an excuse to threaten free speech and punish dissent.
The signatories include some of the biggest names in progressive advocacy, from the ACLU and Greenpeace USA to the Service Employees International Union and Indivisible. Together, they condemned what they called an “unjustified” campaign to silence voices on the left.
“Political violence has targeted those of every political persuasion and of no political persuasion,” the groups wrote. “It is un-American and wrong to use this act of violence as a pretext for weaponizing the government to threaten nonprofit and charitable organizations, other perceived adversaries, or any class of people.”
The letter added, “They did not commit this murder, and the vast powers of the government should not be abused to threaten their constitutionally-protected free speech and other rights.”
The outcry comes after Trump and his allies seized on Kirk’s shooting at a Utah university last week, blaming what they see as a broader left-wing effort to stoke violence. The administration has floated the idea of revoking tax-exempt status from progressive nonprofits and even launching racketeering investigations into organizations that help fund or coordinate protests.
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The White House insists it isn’t targeting free speech. “It is disingenuous and false for Democrats to say Administration actions are about free speech – they’re not,” spokeswoman Abigail Jackson said. “This effort will target those committing criminal acts and hold them accountable.”
Trump has already announced plans to designate Antifa as a terrorist organization, although legal experts and critics say it’s unclear how such a move could actually be enforced. For many nonprofits, though, the threat feels real.
“The assassination of Kirk was a tragedy for his family and a danger for the nation,” said Lisa Gilbert, co-president of Public Citizen, which helped organize the letter. “It is unconscionable to exploit this dangerous political moment to further divisions and violate rights, when what we desperately need right now is to lower the temperature of our discourse and bring the country together.”
This wave of resistance follows a similar statement issued Wednesday by more than 100 philanthropic foundations, which defended their work and warned against attempts to “exploit political violence to mischaracterize our good work or restrict our fundamental freedoms.”
The nonprofits’ coordinated stand highlights the growing alarm across the advocacy world. While conservatives argue that groups linked to protests must be held accountable, critics see the administration’s threats as part of a broader effort to intimidate political opponents. With tensions already high, the fight over Kirk’s killing is now spilling into a larger battle about the boundaries of free speech, activism, and government power.