What we can learn from the memes referenced by Charlie Kirk shooting suspect

It has emerged that the bullet casing left behind from the fatal shooting of right-wing political campaigner Charlie Kirk features references to gaming, internet memes, and fascism.

For those not embedded in internet culture, phrases such as “OwO” and “Bella Ciao” might mean very little, but to some gamers and people termed “chronically online”, the meaning appears to be instantly clear.

It comes after Kirk was shot dead while speaking at an event at Utah Valley University, which was the first stop of his “American Comeback Tour”, with planned appearances across the US.

Kirk was known for his hard-right views. He was opposed to gay marriage, abortion and diversity programmes; spread misinformation about Covid-19 vaccines, voting fraud and climate change; made statements that many considered to be racist and sexist; and was highly critical of Islam.

He was a staunch proponent of Christian nationalism and famously said that gun deaths were “worth it” for the right to own firearms.

A 22-year-old college student from Utah, Tyler Robinson, has been named as a suspect in the killing after a two-day police manhunt.

There have been unconfirmed reports in the right-wing American media that Robinson lived with a transgender roommate, who is now cooperating with the FBI.

Here’s everything we know about the suspect, and what we can learn from the memes referenced on the bullet casing.

The bullet casing memes, from ‘OwO’ to ‘Bella Ciao’

A series of phrases were engraved onto the bullet casing left behind from the shooting of Kirk, a 31-year-old hard-right activist and close ally of Donald Trump.

Experts have warned against trying to interpret what the shooter’s motive was from the engravings because common phrases used on the internet often have multiple meanings.

But here’s what we can learn from the notes the shooter left behind.

‘Notices, bulges, OwO, what’s this?’

Within the furry community – an internet subculture interested in anthropomorphic animal characters – “OwO” is an emoticon of a cute face with the Os as eyes and w as a mouth or nose.

Jamie Cohen, an assistant professor of media studies at Queens College who researches memes, told NBC News that the furry community uses the emoticon as a way of flirting, but others use it as a way of mocking or trolling.

It is unclear what the relevance of this emoticon is to Kirk’s shooting, but Cohen noted that messages like this are usually “purposely vague” so that it stays in the “undercurrent of the internet”.

‘Hey, fascist! Catch ↑ → ↓↓↓’

Utah governor Spencer Cox said the writing referring to a fascist “speaks for itself” when asked by Sky News, but questions have been raised over whether it is too early to prescribe a motive.

While the second half of the inscription may seem like gibberish, it was clear to some gamers.

Players of the game Helldivers 2 noted that the arrow formation is the sequence used to summon a 500kg bomb in the game, which has been interpreted as a satire of fascism.

‘Oh bella ciao, bella ciao, bella ciao ciao ciao’

“Bella Ciao” is an anti-fascist Italian folk song popular during Benito Mussolini’s dictatorship.

It was dedicated to the partisans of the Italian resistance, who fought against the occupying troops of Nazi Germany and the collaborationist fascist forces during the liberation of Italy.

The song had a resurgance after Spanish singer Najwa released a Spanish version in 2019, which later appeared in the final credits for the popular series Money Heist.

It has hit 260m streams on Spotify and remains popular on TikTok and among gamers.

‘If you read this, you are gay lmao’

This message is understood to mock investigators using a juvenile insult and an internet abbreviation for “laughing my ass off”.

Lindsay Hahn, a University at Buffalo associate professor who specialises in ideological extremism, told NBC News that the messages do not necessarily indicate a specific ideology, but that they wanted fame.

She said the messages suggest that “the shooter wanted to get a message across and therefore be talked about online”.

What we know about the suspect

The 22-year-old suspected gunman grew up in a close-knit community in Washington, Utah, where he and his family attended the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.

Investigators said the man surrendered himself to police after his father recognised images released by law enforcers and convinced his son to turn himself in.

An affidavit from the state of Utah has confirmed that Robinson was arrested on suspicion of aggravated murder, felony discharge of a firearm, and obstruction of justice.

Right-wing US broadcaster Fox News, citing FBI officials, reported that Robinson lived with his transgender partner, who is now fully collaborating with the investigation.

The reports, which have not been independently confirmed by The i Paper, have led to manic speculation online over the motive behind the shooting.

However, FBI officials declined to dicusss Robinson’s background, political leanings or a possible motive at a press briefing on Friday, saying they are “still working to establish the full picture of who he is and why he acted”.

Robinson has no prior convictions or history of violent offences, according to a Public Safety Assessment Report filed in Utah state court.