The incoming president of the Oxford Union debating society will face a vote of no confidence and potential disciplinary procedures after he officially takes up the position next month over his celebration of the assassination of Charlie Kirk.
The tenure of 20-year-old Politics, Philosophy and Economics student, George Abaraonye, at the helm of the Oxford Union may be quashed before it began after international outrage over his blatant celebration of the killing of the Turning Point USA founder last week by an assassin’s bullet in Utah, including a message which read: “Carlie Kirk got shot, let’s fucking go.” Abaraonye added on Instagram: “Charlie Kirk got shot loool.”
While he later retracted the comments, Abaraonye will face a vote of no confidence after assuming the Oxford Union presidency next month, as over 200 life members of the once-prestigious debating society have backed a vote of no confidence, surpassing the 150 needed, The Telegraph reported.
Meanwhile, the Union said that complaints over the incendiary comments are being treated with the “utmost seriousness”. It will be considered for disciplinary proceedings, which could also result in Abaraonye losing his position.
“Our duty is to demonstrate, to our members, the university community, alumni, and the wider public, that disagreement must be expressed through debate and dialogue, not through abuse or threats,” the society said in a statement.
While the Oxford Union is a separate institution from the University of Oxford, questions have also been raised about Abaraonye’s admission to the thousand-year-old university. Given his reportedly lower-than-required grades, it has been speculated that he may have benefited from a Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) programme.
Former Prime Minister Liz Truss called on the Chancellor of Oxford University, William Hague, to expel Abaraonye from the school, saying: “He has brought shame on Oxford and shame on Britain.”
This call has been echoed internationally, including Republican Senator Ted Cruz, who commented: “I’m curious, would Oxford allow a student to wear a KKK robe, burn a cross on campus [and] hold up signs calling for Black people to be murdered?
“Of course not. That student would be expelled. And so should this one.”
Abaraonye, who personally debated Kirk at the dispatch box of the Oxford Union in May, has previously advocated for political violence while speaking before the society.
During a debate published by the Oxford Union in February, Abaraonye argued that peaceful protest is the most effective means of bringing about political change, but said, “At times, there is simply nothing else that can be required except for violent retaliation.
“And this is a view I wholeheartedly agree with; the view that some institutions are too broken, too oppressive to be reformed, like cancers of our society, and they must, and they should be taken down by any means necessary.”
Although Abaraonye retracted his celebrations of Charlie Kirk’s killing, the student responded to the outrage by claiming that he was being unfairly treated and claimed that Kirk.
“My words were no less insensitive than his – arguably less so; the difference is that I had the humility to recognise when I strayed from my core values, and I addressed it immediately upon reflection,” he said per the New Statesman.
“I am not perfect, but I am willing to reflect, to learn, and to remain true to my values. It is disheartening that those who hurl abuse at me are often the same who claim to value free speech and oppose ‘cancel culture,’ yet apply those principles inconsistently. To demand accountability from some while excusing it in others is not justice; it is selective outrage that erodes the very values we claim to uphold.”
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