A video of the Rev. Dr. Howard-John Wesley condemning the decision to fly flags at half-staff for slain conservative activist Charlie Kirk has ignited a firestorm on social media, drawing both support and fierce criticism for the Alexandria pastor.
Speaking to his congregation at Alfred Street Baptist Church on Sunday, Wesley didn’t mince words about Kirk, who was shot and killed last Wednesday while speaking at Utah Valley University.
“Charlie Kirk did not deserve to be assassinated,” Wesley said during his sermon. “But I am overwhelmed seeing the flags of the United States of America at half-staff, calling this nation to honor and venerate a man who was an unapologetic racist and spent all of his life sowing seeds of division and hate into this land.”
The timing was notable: As Wesley delivered his critique from the pulpit of the historic Alexandria church, hundreds of people were gathering just miles away at the Kennedy Center for a prayer vigil honoring Kirk, according to NBC Washington.
Wesley’s comments went viral after journalist Don Lemon posted a clip on Instagram, according to social media posts.
“I am sorry, but there’s nowhere in the Bible where we are taught to honor evil,” Wesley continued in his sermon, according to the video. “And how you die does not redeem how you lived. You do not become a hero in your death when you are a weapon of the enemy in your life.”
Kirk founded Turning Point USA in 2012 at age 19, according to the organization’s website. He became one of the most recognizable faces of the conservative movement, particularly among young people. His career was marked by controversial statements, according to news reports and archived social media posts. President Donald Trump ordered flags flown at half-staff through Sept. 12 and announced Kirk would posthumously receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom, according to a White House statement.
Wesley’s sermon came during a broader reflection on his recent visit to the National Memorial for Peace and Justice in Montgomery, Alabama, according to the video. He said he felt “overcome with an inescapable weight of grief and sadness” walking through the memorial to lynching victims.
The pastor acknowledged the contradiction some might see in his position. “I can abhor the violence that took your life, but I don’t have to celebrate how you chose to live,” he said in the sermon.
On social media, reactions split along political lines. Conservative commentators accused Wesley of being callous and inappropriate. “Don Lemon is a miserable man,” wrote user Paul A. Szypula on X, formerly Twitter. “He just posted this video clip of Pastor Howard-John Wesley defaming Charlie Kirk and dragging his good name through the mud.”
Alfred Street Baptist Church has more than 12,000 members, according to the church’s website. The church has deep roots in Alexandria’s African American community and a long history of social justice advocacy. Wesley graduated from Boston University School of Theology as a Martin Luther King Jr. Scholar, according to his biography on the church website.
At Sunday’s Kennedy Center vigil, House Speaker Mike Johnson told the crowd that “the leaders of the nation have been shaken” by Kirk’s death, according to NBC Washington. Some attendees told the station they didn’t necessarily agree with all of Kirk’s positions but wanted to pay their respects.
The 22-year-old suspect in Kirk’s killing, Tyler Robinson, remains in custody and isn’t cooperating with investigators, Utah Gov. Spencer Cox said Sunday on NBC’s “Meet the Press.”
Neither Wesley nor Alfred Street Baptist Church responded to emails and phone calls seeking comment Sunday evening.
