Charlie Kirk Highway Sign Sparks Revolt as 'Frustrated' Vietnam Veterans Push for Naming Reversal
Veterans in Tennessee were frustrated that a highway dedicated in their honor has been renamed.
July 23 2026, Published 2:44 p.m. ET
Some Vietnam War veterans are furious after a Tennessee highway dedicated in their honor was redesignated to memorialize slain conservative activist Charlie Kirk, RadarOnline.com can reveal.
Although several elderly veterans said they supported the late Turning Point USA founder, who was assassinated while speaking on a Utah college campus in September 2025, they questioned why the stretch of road dedicated to honoring their service had to be renamed in Kirk's memory.
Charlie Kirk Memorial Highway Signs Infuriating Vietnam Vets
The highway known as Vietnam Veterans Boulevard is now Charlie Kirk Memorial Highway.
Tennessee State Route 386 north of Nashville was designated Vietnam Veterans Boulevard in 1987, but green and white signs calling it the "Charlie Kirk Memorial Highway" began popping up in June, much to the shock of local vets, who were left "blindsided."
“We woke up to find that there were signs placed on Vietnam Veterans Boulevard, and that road has been designated as a memorial to Vietnam veterans for over four decades," war veteran and Vanderbilt University professor David Black, 78, fumed to the New York Times.
He wants the Kirk signs "down as quickly as possible" to restore the road's name to honoring the vets.
Tennessee Lawmaker Defends Charlie Kirk Name Change
The Tennesse General Assembly approved the Charlie Kirk memorial sign in May.
Tennessee State Council of the Vietnam Veterans of America president Barry Rice, 80, scoffed, "Many of our veterans are very supportive of some memorial somewhere for Charlie Kirk. But, not on our Vietnam Veterans Boulevard."
However, State Assemblyman Johnny Garrett, who represents that part of Sumner County, was the man who successfully drove through the name change after encouragement from voters.
“This past year, I was approached by several constituents who wished to find a way to honor Charlie Kirk for the life he lived defending the freedom of speech and inspiring an entire generation of young people to stand up for the freedoms and Christian values that our nation was built on," he told the outlet.
Lawmakers in the Tennessee General Assembly signed off on the Charlie Kirk memorial sign in May.
The location was chosen because of its prominence as "the main entrance to Sumner County from Nashville," but the veterans are livid that their stretch of road was sacrificed for the renaming.
Lawmaker Trying to Make Amends With Vietnam Vets
Charlie Kirk was assassinated during a speaking engagement at Utah Valley University.
Garrett is now scrambling to make amends with the embattled vets, ensuring those who served in Vietnam continue to be recognized with roadside signs bearing their names and military branches in tribute to their service.
After the state lawmaker "heard from several veterans who voiced concern about adding an additional memorial sign to the existing Vietnam Veterans Parkway," he "immediately took action to find a location that was most appropriate to honor both our Vietnam veterans who fought to protect our rights and Charlie Kirk, who died exercising those very same rights."
That's little comfort to Rice and Black, who claim they were told the Kirk signs would find a new home.
A Tennessee Department of Transportation spokesperson insisted the agency had not been ordered to remove the memorial signs dedicated to the right-wing firebrand, fueling even more confusion over the growing controversy.
Vietnam Vets Worry They'll Be Forgotten With New Charlie Kirk Sign
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Charlie Kirk was instrumental in getting young people out to vote for Donald Trump.
Kirk was killed by alleged rooftop gunman Tyler Robinson while speaking on the campus of Utah State University on September 10, 2025. The shooting happened as he was kicking off TPUSA's fall college tour.
Now, Black worries that the young people who make up the bulk of TPUSA's base will immediately relate to the Charlie Kirk Memorial Highway and forget the vets whose names have been associated with the road for nearly 40 years. Many of Kirk's fans were born long after the Vietnam War ended in 1975 and have little knowledge about the controversial conflict.
"They’ll see the name Charlie Kirk, and they know that name, but they don’t know about Vietnam and what the veterans experienced or endured. And pretty soon for them, it’s going to become Charlie Kirk Memorial Highway, because that’s a name they recognize," he told the outlet.
