One of the first UK university vigils for Charlie Kirk held on campus

At around 16:45 on 10 November, a Pro-Life Society vigil was held for Charlie Kirk in the centre of campus.

The vigil was met by a major counter-protest organised by a number of left-wing and feminist student groups.

The event marks one of the first events on a UK University campus to commemorate the American right-wing commentator, who died in September 2025 after being shot at an event at Utah Valley University.

Lois Miller, a member of the Alliance for Defending Freedom (ADF) International, spoke at the event. The ADF is a far-right group, known for calling for "the recriminalisation of sexual acts between consenting LGBTQ adults in the U.S." and has "defended state-sanctioned sterilisation of trans people".

Counter-protestors outnumbered those holding the vigil, their numbers growing through the evening, fully encircling the small group from Pro-Life by 17:15. As the evening progressed, campus security and police officers established a cordon between the two groups, and at points held back counter-protestors.

Chants of "fascist scum off our streets", "pro-life is a lie, you don't care if people die" and "whose bodies, our bodies" were heard as far away as the Alan Gilbert Learning Commons. Counter-protesters also sought to drown out speakers at the vigil, using shouts of "shame" and "wankers", as well as loudspeakers playing music.

They also took aim at the numbers attending the vigil, chanting "there are more, many, many more of us than you" and "can you hear pro-life sing, I can't hear a f**king thing".

Signs reading "smash the far right" and "destroy Pro-Life Society" were seen, alongside a number of flags, including one reading "antifascist action".

By 17:30, when the police began to move those holding the vigil away from the counter-protestors, chants began to target them, including shouts of "cops off campus" and "who protects the fascists, police protect the fascists", with cheers heard when officers left the scene.

In an interview with the Mancunion, a counter-protestor described how they had rallied in opposition to "the ADF, a far-right think tank in America [...] trying to spread their fascist ideology to other countries" and stated that "Pro-Life Society is not welcome on campus, fascists are not welcome on our campus, and their supporters aren't either".

Speaking to our reporters, a student attending the counter-protest said they encountered the protest "on Instagram", describing how they "just wanted to come and show [their] support".

Another student present mentioned how they were "not really" involved in campus politics, but described the Charlie Kirk vigil as "bonkers", whilst a counter-protestor described how they "can't really believe that they [Pro-Life Society] are allowed on campus".

In an Instagram post following the event, Pro-Life Society described the counter-protesters as "pro-abortion mobs" and trying to "silence the victims of abortion".

In response to the claims of the counter-protesters, a University of Manchester spokesperson commented:

“As a University we have a duty to promote free speech and will put in place security and other measures to allow a diverse range of events to take place. On this occasion a group of protestors disrupted a student society event on the street outside one of our buildings, which required the police to intervene. While we respect the right to protest, this should not be to the detriment of allowing others to express their views within the law”.

The Students' Union also put out a statement in 2024 regarding the pro-life society, emphasising that they "recognise the unease and concern" regarding its establishment, but as a Students’ Union, they "have a legal duty to approve a society if it is not breaking the law".

In regards to protests against the society, the statement added:

"We encourage our students to engage in lawful debate and we support peaceful and respectful protest, as well as the right to free speech and expression within the law".

Greater Manchester Police did not respond to a request for comment.