Erika Kirk Paints A Sad Picture Of Her Christmas Without Charlie Amid Criticism

Erika Kirk is still grieving the loss of her late husband, Charlie Kirk, months after his untimely death at the age of 31. She's consequently opened up about how hard the holiday season has been for her amid allegations that she's using his death for profit. Taking to her Instagram Story on Christmas Day, Erika painted a pretty sad picture of her first Christmas without Charlie. She reposted a message from her husband wishing everyone a Merry Christmas on X last year. "There is a God who is real, who loves you, and who sent his Son to earth to live a perfect life and die for our sins so that we might be forever reconciled to Him," Charlie wrote alongside a family photo. Erika added a brief note reflecting on how much she misses him, writing, "What I would give for one more Christmas..."

The post came shortly after Erika, who's remained highly visible since her husband's death, released a video sharing her holiday message for audiences on Christmas Eve. She encouraged them to slow down and make time for family, stressing it's what Charlie would have wanted for them as well. "There's a lot of noise out there. The holiday season can be really crazy. But I just pray that you find some alone time with the Lord and your family," said Erika (via X). "Love on your babies. Love on your family members. Life is short." 

The video ends with Erika encouraging viewers to grab a copy of Kirk's last book in time for Christmas. Critics were unsurprisingly quick to label her an opportunist and a grifter. "Can't be a Conservative Christmas message without 'order now' somewhere in the mix," one user quipped on X, while another wrote, "The grift is strong in this one."

Erika Kirk has remained in the public eye following the fatal shooting of her husband Charlie Kirk in September 2025. One week before Christmas, she spoke at Turning Point USA's AmericaFest conference in Phoenix (and wore some unfortunately leathery makeup for her speech). She's also done interviews promoting Charlie's posthumously released book and opening up about how she's handled her grief since his passing.

According to Erika, this has been her way of honoring Charlie's life and continuing his work. However, for many others, it comes across as self-serving. "Died four months ago. Been doing this for 11 weeks. Wasted NO time," someone noted on Reddit. Others have found it pretty ironic that she's touring and self-promoting instead of focusing on her children (she has two with Charlie). "You'd think she'd want to spend as much time as possible with her very young kids who lost their dad in a very traumatic, public way that they don't yet understand – rather than palm them off on nannies and doing her pyrotechnic tour," another person wrote on Reddit.

Erika had a clapback for those who thinks she's doing it for attention and personal gain. On December 11, 2025, just two weeks before Christmas, she appeared on Fox News' "Outnumbered" with Harris Faulkner to push back on the conspiracy theories and profiteering accusations against her. She said the criticism didn't surprise her at all, as she and Charlie had been dealing with attacks long before he was murdered. She also stressed that she wouldn't let the backlash stop her from doing what she believes her husband would have wanted. "I'm not going to sit in the corner and cry and be in a fetal position. This is a duty to my husband and it's an absolute honor and I will never back down. So my message to them is to stop," the current Turning Point USA CEO told her haters.