Department of Education hung Charlie Kirk banner on DC building near education heroes message

In February 2026, a rumor spread that a banner with the portrait of Turning Point USA co-founder and conservative commentator Charlie Kirk appeared on the building of the U.S. Department of Education in Washington, D.C. One photograph of the building that circulated widely showed a banner with Kirk's image next to others highlighting notable people on the outside of the Lyndon Baines Johnson Department of Education Building, which spans an entire block on Maryland Avenue Southwest, streets away from the U.S. Capitol. 

Posts on Reddit, Instagram, Facebook and X shared the image, with one X user expressing disbelief that the controversial pundit, who was shot and killed in September 2025, should appear on the building (archived): 

The photo showed the recognizable facade of the building with several tall and narrow banners. One of the banners showed Booker T. Washington, a Black man who advocated for Black people to access vocational training in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Another showed Catharine Beecher, who fought for women's education and their role as teachers and mothers in the 19th century. A third banner had Kirk's photo. Another banner in the set was wider and read, "Empowering our states to tell the stories of our heroes in American education." 

As we will outline below, the claim was true. Snopes confirmed that the image was authentic, meaning not created or edited with artificial intelligence, by corresponding with the person who first posted the photograph and cross-referencing it with other images showing the banner. A representative for the Education Department separately confirmed over email that the banner showing Kirk was real.

A reporter at the international news outlet Semafor, David Weigel, took the photograph and posted it on social media, including X and Bluesky on March 1, 2026 (archived):

On Bluesky, Weigel posted another picture of the facade, showing more banners with the images of additional notable people, including founding father Benjamin Franklin, pastor and civil rights activist Martin Luther King Jr. and Anne Sullivan, the educator who taught Helen Keller, a deaf and blind woman, to communicate.

(Bluesky user Dave Weigel)

Weigel said in an email he took the photo while he was making his way to the Ronald Reagan National Airport, which has the airport code DCA, and was looking for a taxi when he saw the banners on the southern facade of the building, on C Street Southwest, across from the hotel Holiday Inn:

I was taking the metro to DCA for a work trip, but realized trains were not running all the way there. I got off at L'Enfant Plaza and walked toward the Mall to the nearby Holiday Inn, realizing I could get a cab there. I looked up and saw the Ed building and the banners, across from the hotel.

He also mentioned other people had posted photos of the banners from different angles. This was true. For example, multiple photos of the banner appeared on the websites of news agency The Associated Press and image bank Getty Images.

In an email, the Education Department confirmed the facade displayed these banners in commemoration of the 250th anniversary of the country's foundation. Education Department spokesperson Savannah Newhouse said:

We are proud to honor visionary leaders whose contributions have shaped the future of education for generations. Their work reflects Benjamin Franklin's timeless belief that 'an investment in knowledge pays the best interest.' As our country marks an historic 250th milestone, this moment invites us all to join in the pursuit of fostering educational opportunity that empowers every learner to rise, contribute, and help shape a brighter future for generations yet to come.

Asked when the banners first appeared on the building and why the department had chosen to include Kirk among other "heroes" of education, Newhouse did not immediately reply. We will update this report should she respond. 

The banner featuring Kirk appeared on the Education Department's headquarters almost a year after, U.S. President Donald Trump issued an executive order seeking to shutter the department. Snopes reported on the possible consequences of doing so.