Utah lawmaker seeks to rename road after Charlie Kirk
Utah lawmaker seeks to rename road, snubbing Harvey Milk for Charlie Kirk
A Utah Republican in the state legislature is proposing that a road named after gay rights activist Harvey Milk be changed to honor Charlie Kirk, who was assassinated in the Beehive State last month.
Republican Utah state Rep. Trevor Lee recently introduced a bill to rename Harvey Milk Boulevard to Charlie Kirk Boulevard. The street runs through Salt Lake City.
The state lawmaker said the name change would make sense, considering Kirk died in Utah and Milk was fatally shot in California.
“From the vast majority of Utahns, they would say that Harvey Milk does not have any connection to Utah whatsoever,” Lee told a local ABC outlet this week. “But Charlie Kirk does now, especially after being assassinated in the state of Utah.”
Kirk was killed on Sept. 10 while speaking in front of some 3,000 attendees at Utah Valley University in Orem, about 40 miles southeast of Salt Lake City. His body was taken to the state capital before Vice President JD Vance transported his coffin on Air Force Two en route to Phoenix, Arizona.
Kirk has no other apparent ties to Utah or Salt Lake City besides his death.
“It’s extremely sad that someone was assassinated because they wanted to have dialogue and someone didn’t agree with that,” Lee said. “So they chose to murder him, and there’s no need for that in this environment. And so I think it’s a good way to honor someone who always wanted to try to have discourse, and try to reach out to the other side of the aisle on different opinions.”
Salt Lake City Mayor Erin Mendenhall, a Democrat, has declined to comment on the proposal, according to multiple reports.
The Salt Lake City Council voted in 2016 to name a portion of 900 South after Milk, the first openly gay man elected to public office in California. He was a member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors until his death in 1978.
Under Utah law, cities are allowed to rename streets and other public landmarks. The state legislature, however, may override the city’s authority in this case if the bill gains traction.
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The legislative move comes after Secretary of War Pete Hegseth announced in June that a Navy vessel named after Milk was renamed to honor Oscar V. Peterson, who received a posthumous Medal of Honor in World War II for his actions during the Battle of the Coral Sea. The announcement was part of the secretary’s efforts to eliminate diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts in the nation’s military.
Lee has said his bill was inspired by Hegseth’s action.
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