A former Dallas Cowboys cheerleader has risked upsetting her conservative peers by advocating for gun reform following Charlie Kirk’s assassination on Wednesday.
MAGA commentator Kirk, 31, was shot and killed during a speech at Utah Valley University. After a bullet struck him in the neck, the father-of-two immediately collapsed and later passed away at a local hospital from his injuries.
And following his passing, former Cowboys cheerleader Miranda Buechel spoke about the need for gun regulation in the USA.
‘It truly saddens me that those posting about Charlie Kirk are the same individuals who uphold the 2nd amendment and never comment when our CHILDREN are losing their lives to gun violence in schools daily,’ Buechel, a Cowboys dancer from 2017-20, shared on her Instagram story.
‘No family should have to experience what his family is experiencing today. This is exactly why we need gun regulation in this country.’
Buechel also shared a post on her story highlighting Kirk’s strong support of the Second Amendment and addressing gun violence in America as an ‘epidemic.’
Miranda Buechel, seen above, called for gun reform in the wake of Charlie Kirk’s death
Kirk was fatally shot in Utah while doing an event for college students on Wednesday
‘The tragic irony is, Kirk’s death may well have been prevented by the policies he opposed,’ that post read.
However, several of Buechel’s fellow dancers were seemingly not interested in discussing gun reform on social media following Kirk’s death.
Reece Weaver, Kennedy Hannan and Julissa Garcia all made or re-posted posts referencing Jesus or Kirk’s faith as a Christian.
‘This is not a political statement,’ Garcia posted on Instagram. ‘This is about HUMAN life. A husband, father, and son. Charlie used his platform to share truth, and that’s how I will always remember his life.’
While Buechel criticized Second Amendment supporters for not speaking out about school shootings, it’s worth noting that Weaver also shared an Instagram story regarding Wednesday’s Evergreen High School shooting, and Garcia’s post also mentioned mass shootings.
Buechel’s comments came as another tragic school shooting also occurred on Wednesday, as two students were hospitalized (and the shooter died of a self-inflicted gunshot) after a shooting at Evergreen High School in Colorado.
Current Cowboys cheerleaders like Reece Weaver re-posted posts referencing Jesus
Fellow dancer Julissa Garcia also re-posted a graphic to her Instagram story which read in part: ‘We desperately need Jesus.’
Dancer Kennedy Hannan echoed a similar sentiment on her Instagram story
It was the 47th school shooting of the year in the United States, according to CNN.
Dancer McKenna Gehrke also posted a story about the Evergreen shooting, while fellow cheerleader Kleine Powell urged others to ‘advocate for safety in our schools and in our communities.
‘Change cannot happen without urgency from all of us,’ she wrote on her Instagram story.
Kirk’s death also resulted in plenty of angry responses from others in the sports world, including Giants quarterback Jaxson Dart, who was born in the Utah city of Kaysville.
Dart called the shooting ‘absolutely sickening’ and championed Kirk as someone who ‘did great things for our country’.
Ravens star Lamar Jackson didn’t reference the incident directly but reposted a poignant message on his X account.
It read: ‘Celebrating the death of someone you don’t share the same beliefs as is wild. Seeing it play out in real time is disgusting.’
The 31-year-old was married and shared two young children with wife Erika Frantzve (pictured)
Kansas City Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker, who is an outspoken conservative, also spoke out on Kirk’s murder, posting: ‘Thank you for your strong witness for Christ @charliekirk11.
‘Thank you for pursuing truth and leading your family as a husband and father. Eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon them. May their soul and the souls of all the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace. Amen’
Former NFL linebacker and podcast host Will Compton also called Wednesday’s events ‘insane and incredibly sad.
‘Seeing the family photos with his wife and kids breaks my heart and I’m praying for a miracle that he makes it’.
Kirk leaves behind his wife Erika Frantzve, with whom he had a three-year-old daughter and a son, 16 months. The couple celebrated their fourth wedding anniversary in May.
