Freedom (statue)

Freedom
Statue of Charlie Kirk
The statue in July 2026
ArtistSergio Furnari
Year2026
Completion date
July 17, 2026
MediumSteel and resin
SubjectCharlie Kirk
Dimensions (6'5 in)
ConditionOn display
Location

Freedom, or the Statue of Charlie Kirk, is a life-size statue built by Italian-American artist Sergio Furnari to honor the late right-wing political activist Charlie Kirk after his assassination on September 10, 2025. The statue was temporarily placed on display in Manhattan in Times Square on the first anniversary of his death, with Furnari hoping to find a buyer so it could be permanently installed somewhere or privately kept. At the announcement that the statue would be unveiled on the anniversary of Kirk's death, it was ridiculed on social media, with people threatening to harm the statue once it was displayed.

History

On September 10, 2025, right-wing political activist Charlie Kirk was assassinated during a campus debate at Utah Valley University in Orem, Utah. Following his death, he was revered by Republicans and young conservatives. In July 2026, Italian artist Sergio Furnari announced his creation of the Charlie Kirk statue, created in Kirk's honor after his death. Even though Furnari did not agree with some of Kirk's views, he said that his reason for its creation was that he wanted to exercise the First Amendment right of freedom of speech. Furnari found out about Kirk's assassination when his daughter ran into his room while he was still in bed and told him that Kirk had been assassinated, Furnari said that, "I would say, saddened by it." Furnari also said that he "wasn't a fan" of Kirk and didn't agree with him on "certain issues".

Unveiling

The statue was put on display in Times Square in New York City on September 10, 2026, on the anniversary of Kirk's assassination. Furnari stated that he wanted to put the statue up at the exact minute Kirk had been assassinated a year earlier. Furnari invited New York City mayor Zohran Mamdani to the statue's unveiling, but he did not show up. Following the unveiling of the statue, a crowd marched through Times Square chanting "They couldn't kill us all!" and "We stand for Charlie Kirk!", among other chants. A fight between supporters and protesters broke out during the march, with people having heated exchanges and shouting matches. Shortly after the altercations, some of Kirk's supporters got out of a cab and were heckled with such comments as "Nazis are losers".

Charlie Kirk, the subject the statue pays tribute to

Depiction

The statue depicts Charlie Kirk, a right-wing political activist. Kirk is depicted sitting down holding a microphone up to his mouth with his left hand and his right hand is resting on his right leg. Kirk is wearing his "FREEDOM" shirt he wore the day of his assassination.

Finances

Furnari is said to have invested $100,000 of his own money in building the statue. He said that he expects the wealthy to donate money to him, although no one has done so yet. He put up a fundraising campaign on the Christian crowdfunding platform GiveSendGo. The crowdfunding page stated that he had to sell his own apartment and that "none of the politicians/entrepreneurs/supporters have contacted him." As of August 2026, he had raised over $9,000. In an interview with The Guardian in July, Furnari blamed the people for why his statue did not sell, and said that he "knows lots of people out there, and everybody's so cheap". Furnari also said, "Is it cursed? Maybe. I don't know."

Reception

After the announcement of the monument for Kirk, people online made fun of the statue, threatening to urinate on or vandalize the statue once it was unveiled in New York. Some of Charlie Kirk's supporters noted that it looks nothing like him. Furnari said to USA Today that "I would never be an instigator, especially with my artwork; it's not made for that." People speculated online that football player Nick Bosa had visited the statue while getting ready for training camp, which later turned out to be false. Threats of vandalizing the statue were made again hours before the statue was put on display, and Furnari defended it, saying, "You should have a little bit of empathy".

References

  1. ↑ Woodson, Wren (July 20, 2026). "The Sculptor Behind the Viral Times Square Charlie Kirk Statue Thinks It Might Be 'Cursed'". Jezebel. Retrieved September 12, 2026.
  2. ↑ "Charlie Kirk fatally shot at Utah university event". Reuters. September 10, 2025.
  3. ↑ Cleave, Iona (July 20, 2026). "Sculptor left $100k out of pocket after Charlie Kirk statue fails to find funding". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved August 6, 2026.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Gabbatt, Adam (July 20, 2026). "New York sculptor spent $100,000 to make a Charlie Kirk statue no one wants to buy". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved August 5, 2026.
  5. ↑ Brunati, Bryan (July 14, 2026). "Charlie Kirk Monument Set to Be Unveiled in New York City on Anniversary of Activist's Assassination". AOL.com. Retrieved July 19, 2026.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Sommerlad, Joe (July 21, 2026). "Sculptor spent $100,000 making lifesize Charlie Kirk statue but has no takers". The Independent. Retrieved July 26, 2026.
  7. 1 2 AOL (September 10, 2026). "Charlie Kirk statue bound for NY's Times Square as sculptor defies threats ahead of unveiling - AOL". AOL.com. Retrieved September 10, 2026.
  8. ↑ Kornick, Lindsay (July 15, 2026). "Italian artist unveils Charlie Kirk memorial statue he plans to feature at Times Square". Fox News. Retrieved July 19, 2026.
  9. ↑ Euzarraga, Matthew (July 15, 2026). "Statue of Charlie Kirk set to be unveiled in Times Square: Here's when". NewsNation.
  10. ↑ "Artist Sergio Furnari reveals his statue of Turning Point founder Charlie Kirk in Times Square in New York". Reuters. September 10, 2026.
  11. ↑ "Charlie Kirk statue unveiled in Times Square on anniversary of death". North Jersey Media Group. Retrieved September 10, 2026.
  12. ↑ Brauer, Meagan. "Charlie Kirk statue draws supporters to Times Square". CNN. Retrieved September 11, 2026.
  13. ↑ Bonavita, Julia; Cousoulas, Alexia; Bacall, Max (September 9, 2026). "Charlie Kirk statue bound for NY's Times Square as sculptor defies threats ahead of unveiling". Fox News. Retrieved September 10, 2026.
  14. ↑ "Charlie Kirk statue unveiled in Times Square one year after his killing". Reuters. September 11, 2026.
  15. ↑ "NYC: Charlie Kirk statue unveiling sparks clashes in Times Square on assassination anniversary". Reuters. September 10, 2026.
  16. ↑ "Unveiling of Charlie Kirk statue sparks chaos in Times Square". Al Jazeera. Retrieved September 11, 2026.
  17. ↑ Gupta, Shirin (September 11, 2026). "Charlie Kirk statue row: Protestors clash around Times Square; videos capture tense moments". Hindustan Times. Retrieved September 11, 2026.
  18. ↑ Martinez, Amethyst. "What NYC artist says about upcoming Times Square Charlie Kirk statue". USA TODAY. Retrieved September 12, 2026.
  19. ↑ Singh, Ritu (July 21, 2026). "New York Artist Spends Rs 96 Lakh On Charlie Kirk Statue, Says No One Wants To Buy It: "People Are Cheap"". NDTV.
  20. ↑ Villarreal, Daniel (July 14, 2026). "Charlie Kirk statue to be unveiled in NYC. People say it'll be "destroyed & vandalized" in seconds". LGBTQ Nation. Retrieved July 26, 2026.
  21. ↑ Goodman, Rachel (July 20, 2026). "New York artist who made statue of Charlie Kirk claims no one will buy it". Global News. Retrieved July 26, 2026.
  22. ↑ "Charlie Kirk Memorial Monument | GiveSendGo". GiveSendGo. Retrieved August 6, 2026.
  23. ↑ Dey, Sourodeep (July 21, 2026). ""Is it cursed? Maybe": Sergio Furnari starts GiveSendGo after Charlie Kirk statue sculptor receives no interest from buyers after spending $100000". primetimer.com. Retrieved September 11, 2026.
  24. ↑ "Artist's Planned Monument to Charlie Kirk Gets Trolled Online". Hyperallergic. July 16, 2026. Retrieved August 6, 2026.
  25. 1 2 Bishara, Hakim (July 17, 2026). "Planned Charlie Kirk Statue Gets Trolled". Hyperallergic. Retrieved July 19, 2026.
  26. ↑ Lisitza, Alexa (July 22, 2026). "So, Um, The Artist Of That Viral Charlie Kirk Statue Is Mad That People Want To Pee On It". BuzzFeed. Retrieved August 6, 2026.
  27. ↑ Wrobleski, Tom (July 16, 2026). "Location of new Charlie Kirk memorial statue raises concerns: 'Not sure how long this will survive'". Yahoo News. Retrieved July 19, 2026.
  28. ↑ Martinez, Amethyst (July 16, 2025). "What NYC artist says about upcoming Times Square Charlie Kirk statue". USA TODAY. Retrieved July 19, 2026.
  29. ↑ Roy, Mahima (July 16, 2026). "Fact check: Did Nick Bosa really visit Charlie Kirk's statue in New York City ahead of training camp?". The Times of India. ISSN 0971-8257. Retrieved July 19, 2026.