I will soon be introducing legislation to establish Charlie Kirk Day as an official state holiday on the first Monday of August each year.

Charlie Kirk was a tireless advocate of free speech and civil debate, particularly on the campuses of our nation’s colleges and universities – even during a period of harshly curtailed freedom of expression on those very campuses. This advocacy tragically cost Mr. Kirk his life, with his assassination leaving behind his young wife, children, and a nation that will be poorer without his enormous contributions to our public discourse.

Honoring Charlie Kirk’s life and work would continue Pennsylvania’s long history as the nation’s foremost guarantor of free speech – a legacy dating back to our Commonwealth’s 1776 Constitution, in which we were the first state in the world to enshrine the freedom of speech in a constitution.

By establishing Charlie Kirk Day on the first Monday of each August, the month when college and university students traditionally return to campus, we can honor his legacy and continue his work to celebrate, encourage, and teach peaceful and civil political discourse to all Americans.

I encourage you to join me in cosponsoring this legislation.