The crypto community is condemning the emergence of tokens tied to two recent tragedies — the killing of US conservative activist Charlie Kirk and the stabbing of Ukrainian refugee Iryna Zarutska.
Critics have branded the moves ‘immoral’ and ‘despicable,’ accusing creators of exploiting grief and public attention for profit.
How Human Loss Fueled Opportunistic Crypto Launches
The launch of new tokens following headline-making events is not new in the crypto market. For example, in late 2024, the PNUT meme coin was created amid public outcry over the euthanasia of a squirrel named Peanut.
Similarly, Elon Musk’s reference to himself as the ‘Dogefather’ triggered a wave of Dogefather-themed token launches. However, what sets the latest launches apart is their direct connection to major human tragedies.
As the BBC reported, Charlie Kirk, 31, was fatally shot around 12:20 p.m. local time. This happened while speaking at Utah Valley University, during his ‘American Comeback Tour.’ The event turned into chaos as news of his death spread.
Former US presidents Joe Biden and Barack Obama, as well as several White House officials, have since expressed condolences.
Separately, Iryna Zarutska, a 23-year-old Ukrainian refugee who escaped the war in her homeland, was stabbed to death on August 22 on a train. While these deaths have sparked nationwide grief and political debate, they have also fueled a wave of opportunistic token launches.
Data from DexScreener shows that multiple ‘Justice for Charlie’ tokens appeared almost immediately after the news broke, raising alarm over unethical profiteering in the crypto space.
Notably, several of these tokens skyrocketed in value within hours, climbing tens of thousands of percent.
Similarly, several ‘Justice for Iryna’ tokens also appeared in September. The token frenzy gained further traction after Musk’s $1 million donation pledge. This caused several tokens to pump.
However, the latest data showed that the meme coins crashed and were in the red at press time, a pattern often associated with pump-and-dump schemes or outright rug pulls.
Crypto’s Ethical Dilemma: Critics Slam ‘Justice Tokens’ as Scams
The token launches have also attracted major criticism from the market. In a post on X (formerly Twitter), Crypto Rug Muncher labeled most of these tokens as scams.
“Launching scam tokens to profit from someone’s death is despicable,” the post read.
The analyst revealed that the largest CHARLIE token (contract: CsKfV8ePhQWiyQxNJwXhKZHcmUyNWBkHFGrkZGdJpump) has already recorded substantial insider selling. Furthermore, GMGN further flagged the creation of more than 700 new wallets connected to the token — a pattern commonly associated with artificial bundling and other red-flag behaviors.
Another analyst estimated that the developers behind the CHARLIE and IRYNA tokens have already pocketed nearly $2 million from the launches, questioning the morality of profiting from tragedies in this way.
“I believe it’s the same cabal that ran the IRYNA token trying to run CHARLIE rn. if you have any morals, stay away from trading it,” a market watcher added.
Nevertheless, posts on X reflect a divided sentiment. Some traders defend buying the tokens as a way to honor Kirk and Zarutska.
“This is not just a coin – it’s a movement for justice. Every trade isn’t just speculation, it’s a way to support Iryna. The community is rallying, volume is surging, and many feel the mission deeply. Iryna may rest in peace, but her name lives on-chain,” Altcoin Vietnam stated.
The rise of ‘justice tokens’ exposes one of the most difficult questions facing the crypto industry: where the line lies between innovation, speculation, and humanity. For some, these tokens are framed as symbols of solidarity.
For others, they are nothing more than cynical attempts to profit from the grief surrounding the tragic deaths of Charlie Kirk and Iryna Zarutska. Until the industry reckons with this tension, the debate over morality in crypto will only intensify.
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