US President Donald Trump proclaimed Charlie Kirk a “martyr for American freedom” in a memorial ceremony to commemorate the political activist as Erika Kirk said she forgave the man who gunned down her husband.

“On that day, this evangelist for American liberty became immortal,” Trump said on Sunday before tens of thousands of mourners inside the State Farm stadium in Glendale, Arizona. “He’s a martyr now for American freedom.”

Trump described how Kirk would ask him to fly across the country to appear at his events with little notice.

“Charlie didn’t just bring young people to the movement; all of a sudden, it started to grow by leaps and bounds. In 2024, we won more young people than any Republican candidate in the history of our country,” Trump said.

Moments earlier Erika Kirk vowed to continue her husband’s legacy, enrolling more campuses and students in the conservative movement he founded.