SPRINGVILLE, Utah — For days now, Utah counselors and psychologists have felt the ripple effect of Charlie Kirk’s murder.
“It just sounds like an earthquake, and everyone starts screaming,” said UVU student Angeline Paul on the day of the shooting.
They’ve opened their doors to those like Paul who lived through the trauma of Wednesday.
“Me and numbers of my colleagues have opened up emergency sessions,” said Dr. Matt Draper, the clinical director for Paramita Perspectives.
Draper’s Springville office has been busy serving those affected by a tragedy that’s very close to him - Draper taught psychology for 15 years at UVU.
“My number one concern is for the welfare of my friends who work at Utah Valley and people in general,” Draper said.
But with an alleged shooter now in custody, and as more details emerge, Draper’s other concerns involve what could lead people down an extreme path.
“Inscriptions on a fired casing read ‘Notices bulges. OwO. What’s this?’,” said Governor Spencer Cox during a press conference Friday where they announced the arrest of Kirk’s alleged killer, Tyler Robinson.
“What we have done is we have created a much larger community online, right?,” said Draper. “When we go to the pub, there may only be a couple people there. But now, we have a digital pub full of thousands.”
He says ‘For You pages’ and algorithms now feed people the content they’re seeking - and narrow their worldview.
“If there’s only one voice allowed in a particular echo chamber - that’s where polarization happens,” Draper added.
Draper says these echo chambers can create parasocial relationships, where purely online connections come to feel as intimate as one in real-life.
“Some of the markings on the shell casings were of anti-fascist slogans,” Draper explained. “If I’m online and I’m curious about that, then I find myself gravitated towards those groups…and then if that’s the only voice I hear, it can convince me that what I’m doing is right.”
He’s left to worry this horrific shooting may only deepen divides - he even sees it within his own family.
“Some celebrating it and some lashing out against those celebrating it, and once again, I said this is fueling the divisiveness in our country and it has a distinct psychological effect,” said Draper.
So he urges people to seek out multiple points of view on an issue, and asks parents to encourage discussion and debate with their own children.
“Be aware of your echo chambers,” Draper said. “Be the kind of parents that children want to come to when they’re confused or hurt or scared.”
“Compassion is easy when it’s for people who agree with us,” Draper continued. “Compassion is hard when it’s for people who disagree with us. The more of us who are practicing compassion, the more our culture can get over this cultural and ideological divide.”
