(José Niño, Headline USA) A UC Berkeley event marking the anniversary of Charlie Kirk’s death has attracted the attention of the State Department after online accounts claimed that some attendees held student visas. A College Fix report described the event and the subsequent federal response, though no public record has confirmed that the people identified online were foreign students or that any visa was revoked.
On September 10, members of Turning Point USA at Berkeley first held a remembrance for Kirk, the organization’s founder. The Daily Californian reported that the group displayed a large portrait of Kirk and signs emphasizing “freedom and American patriotism.”
John Paul Leon, the chapter president, addressed those gathered at the memorial. “You don’t have to agree with everything he said, but when you support the literal political violence and action against this man, that is an act of moral depravity.”
Later that evening, a separate group assembled for an event called the Kirkversary. The Daily Californian wrote that “A few hours later, at 6 p.m., a bustling crowd of students gathered” and that the event “brought students together to sing, cheer and boo at Kirk’s memory.” Participants reportedly wore Kirk themed costumes and used the chant “jerk for Kirk.”
Photos from the gathering later circulated online. The X account Department of Deportations posted an image of several attendees and wrote, “Meet this group of Berkeley students who are here on student visas and will soon be heading back!” The post also claimed, “The guy in the center is Nicholas Vail.”
And for our last trick of the day, we’re going to get a couple of people deported.
Meet this group of Berkeley students who are here on student visas and will soon be heading back!
The guy in the center is Nicholas Vail. The rest can be found easily. pic.twitter.com/OiLGUM6eji
— Department Of Deportations (@DoDeportations) September 13, 2026
The account’s claim about visa status has not been independently verified. The New York Times reported that it “is unclear if any of the people who participated in the event, including those who opposed Mr. Kirk’s politics, were foreign students on visas.”
State Department spokesman Tommy Pigott told the College Fix, “people in the United States on visas are guests in this country, and we will not tolerate people here on visas who break our laws, support terrorism, or unlawfully incite violence, which ultimately led to the horrific assassination of an American.”
He added, “That is not only common sense, it’s an essential component of our national security. If that wasn’t the policy under the previous administration, it should’ve been, and it is now under the Trump administration.”
The College Fix said UC Berkeley declined to comment on whether administrators knew about the gathering, whether it disrupted campus life, how free speech rules applied, or whether any discipline was under review.
