'Charlie Kirkovich'

The late Charlie Kirk, the assassinated Turning Point USA founder, has some awesome fans in a place you've probably never thought of, Serbia.

Late last year, street artists made a mural on the side of a highway overpass honoring Kirk in the aftermath of his assassination. While Kirk himself was not Serbian, Serbs consider him an “honorary Serb” because when he grew up in the suburbs of Chicago he played on a basketball team with a bunch of Serbian-American players. A mural of Kirk in a basketball jersey, with the text “Charlie Kirkovich, 1993-2005 RIP,” appeared in Belgrade.

When Charlie Kirk was killed, the grief extended well beyond American borders. Cronkite News of Arizona PBS noted in a late 2025 report that his death reverberated across the globe, including in an unlikely place: Belgrade, Serbia, roughly 6,000 miles from Kirk's home turf.

A local artist responded to the news by painting Kirk's likeness on a Belgrade wall, depicting him in an Illinois White Eagles basketball uniform — a nod to Kirk's own accounts of playing on a Serbian team in Chicago during his youth.

Kirk had spoken warmly about that connection on his show. He recalled growing up alongside Serbian immigrants in Chicago, playing on their basketball team, and even going by a Serbianized version of his name: Ševa Kurković. He claimed to own the jersey.

That cultural thread appears to have meant something to Serbians. The original mural, however, didn't survive long. It was defaced, and Serbian officials later shared photographs of the damage. But the erasure only seemed to fuel more painting.

"Charlie represented the same values that are common in Serbia," Ćurić explained, citing patriotism, Christianity, and free expression. The basketball connection, he added, deepened the bond: Kirk had reportedly sung Serbian songs with teammates after matches.

Radić echoed that sentiment, framing the mural as a gesture of solidarity between Serbian and American conservatives.

Neither artist had met Kirk in person, but both described his assassination as galvanizing. "After he was assassinated, it was just extra motivation for us," Ćurić said. The goal, he explained, is to keep the ideas Kirk championed alive — and visible.