5 takeaways from Gov. Josh Shapiro’s speech against political violence

Pennsylvania’s Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro delivered a speech condemning political violence amid growing unrest.

Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro delivered a keynote speech condemning political violence in the wake of right-wing activist Charlie Kirk’s death at the 2025 Eradicate Hate Global Summit at the University of Pittsburgh on Tuesday. 

Shapiro was invited to speak at the summit following the arson attack at his residence last April, when Shapiro and his family finished celebrating the first night of Passover. 

Here are some key takeaways from Shapiro’s speech. 

1. Emotional scars remain

Even though it has been five months since the attack at the Governor’s residence, Shapiro opened up about the emotional scars that are still lingering from the night. 

Shapiro was in the residence with his wife and extended family members after they finished celebrating the first night of Passover. 

“ I thank God every day that we were able to evacuate safely, that no one was physically injured or, worse yet, killed. That all the staff who worked at the residence, the brave police and firefighters and first responders who ran toward danger, were okay, but understand it doesn’t mean that the attack hasn’t left emotional scars. I can attest to that, especially as a father, a father to four children, knowing that my life choices put them at risk.”

2. Trump cherry-picks condemning political violence. 

Shapiro took a jab at President Donald Trump for cherry picking what political violence to condemn and which political violence not to condemn. 

It took Trump close to a week to talk to Shapiro following the arson attack, and Trump said on Monday that he wasn’t aware of Minnesota House Speaker Melissa Hortman’s assassination more than three months after the fact. 

“ During moments like this, I believe we have a responsibility to be clear and unequivocal in calling out all forms of political violence, and making clear it is all wrong. That shouldn’t be hard to do. Unfortunately, some from the dark corners of the internet all the way to the Oval Office want to cherry pick which instances of political violence they want to condemn. Doing that only further divides us and it makes it harder to heal.”

3. Censorship and clamping down on free speech are not solutions

Shapiro warned that clamping down on free speech and censorship at this moment will only make things worse. 

“ We need to create more opportunities for peaceful and respectful dialogue, respecting each other’s fundamental rights as Americans. Censorship, using the long arm of government to silence people, to silence businesses and nonprofits, and restrict their right to free speech, well, that will not solve this problem. Prosecuting constitutionally protected speech will only further erode our freedoms and deepen the mistrust. That is un-American.”

4. We need to teach media literacy in schools

In order to combat misinformation and online hate speech, Shapiro called for digital literacy in schools. 

“ We need to address the hate that is spreading online and give our children the tools to be able to address it.  I want you to know, as parents, this is especially important to Lori and me. In fact, Lori had the idea of asking the Pennsylvania Department of Education to create a digital literacy toolkit that teachers and parents can use to help our children navigate online. I don’t care whether our kids take a position on the political left or on the political right, but I do care that they’re able to discern fact from fiction online.”

5. Institutional erosion leads to more violence

Lastly, Shapiro noted that people’s eroding trust in political institutions will only lead to more political violence in the years to come. 

“ Too many people don’t believe that our institutions and the people in them can solve problems anymore. They feel alone, ignored, shut out by a government that isn’t working for them. This is particularly true of younger Americans. They feel unseen. They feel unheard. They feel unheard in the halls of government. They feel unheard in our elections, in the media, in our nonprofits, our businesses, and within the law. Frustrated by a lack of progress and consumed by this feeling of hopelessness, they find refuge often in the dark corners of the internet where righteous frustration is taken advantage of and used to foment hate. It leads to a belief among some that the only way they can address their problems is through violence. They find online those who glorify violence and urge it on. What starts with callous keystrokes too often ends up with a trigger being pulled in our communities that is dangerous for our democracy, and we need to turn the tide.”