Over 120 liberal nonprofit groups pushed back against the expected crackdown by President Trump’s administration after the killing of conservative activist Charlie Kirk, saying that philanthropy “exists to bring people together, not drive them apart.”
In the joint letter, signed by 136 organizations, they condemned political violence and any potential retaliation directed their way.
“Organizations should not be attacked for carrying out their missions or expressing their values in support of the communities they serve. We reject attempts to exploit political violence to mischaracterize our good work or restrict our fundamental freedoms, like freedom of speech and the freedom to give,” the organization said in a letter on Wednesday. “Attempts to silence speech, criminalize opposing viewpoints and misrepresent and limit charitable giving undermine our democracy and harm all Americans.”
The letter comes as the scrutiny against left-leaning organizations in the U.S. by the Trump administration has increased after the killing of Kirk, the co-founder of Turning Point USA.
The president and other administration officials have characterized those left-leaning groups as playing a part in inciting violence, raising concerns that they might be targeted as a result.
Some of the organizations that have signed the letter, like George Soros’ Open Society Foundations, Tides Foundation and Ford Foundation, have been namedropped by the administration after the killing of Kirk in Utah.
Kirk was shot and killed while addressing attendees at Utah Valley University in Orem, Utah. Law enforcement identified the alleged assassin as Tyler Robinson, a 22-year-old Utah resident.
Trump hammered the “radical left” for the killing of Kirk last week.
“At a moment that is fragile and fraught, we must rise to the higher standard we all collectively desire. Now is a moment for leadership that drives unity rather than sows further division,” the organization wrote in the joint letter. “Our organizations will continue focusing on helping people across all backgrounds, geographies, ideologies, and belief systems, to heal, thrive, and live peacefully together, protected by the freedoms guaranteed in our Constitution.”
On Thursday night, the president said he would designate the far-left activist movement Antifa as a terrorist organization.
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