Multiple people lose their jobs after a controversial post about Charlie Kirk
Public figures, academics and everyday business owners face the consequences of comments that include celebrations and other controversial ideas.
Some educators who lost their jobs in comments they made after the murder of conservative activist Charlie Kirk have filed lawsuits alleging their right to free speech had been violated.
The school and university employees who filed the lawsuit are part of a large number of workers who have been fired or suspended from their work, according to a number of USA Today Today news reports and statements. The count includes at least 50 educators.
At least three people are fighting back in court, according to a report by the USA Today Network. They included teachers from Iowa and compared Kirk to the Nazis. The South Carolina teacher’s assistant posted a quote from Kirk, saying that she opposed him but called the death a “tragedy.” And an Indiana University employee denounced some of his beliefs, saying that Kirk’s death was wrong.
Kirk, co-founder of the conservative youth-centric organization Turning Point USA and close ally of President Donald Trump, was killed while speaking at an event held at Utah Valley University in Orem, Utah on September 10th. Suspect Tyler Robinson was charged with murder and accused of firing a single shot with a rifle from the rooftop.
The murder sparked a tense national debate over partisan rhetoric and politically motivated violence, with many conservatives hoping to celebrate Kirk’s death or fire a private person who somehow spoke of his illness about him.
Three educators — all employed in public school districts and public universities — allegedly protected by their constitutional rights to free speech, according to separate lawsuits filed in September. The lawsuit filed by Matthew Calgol, a former Iowa Oscaloosa High School teacher, reported the Des Moines register, part of the USA Today Network, that the district “wields national power to punish citizens for expressing opinions on political issues.”
“Their actions will attack at the centre of the First Amendment and make the exercise of their constitutional rights cold,” Kalgol’s complaint said.
What did the school employee say about Charlie Kirk?
Suit said all the fired employees posted on social media and expressed their opinions about Charlie Kirk shortly after his death.
Calgol, a teacher fired in Iowa, posted on his personal Facebook page while on his job, which said “one Nazi Down,” the lawsuit said. The Oscaloosa school said on September 11 that Calgol was placed on leave and that his dismissal came on September 17th after a unanimous school board vote, the Des Moines register reported.
“Calgol’s comments were rhetorical exaggerations about widely reported public events,” the complaint states. “It didn’t threaten anyone, incite any immediate illegal activities, and was directed at members of the school community.”
Lauren Vaughn, who was fired on September 15 as a teacher assistant at River Ridge Elementary School in Spartanburg, South Carolina, commented on social media that “she shouldn’t have finished,” according to a journal with a forward-throwing experience in Spartanburg said.
Post Vaughan, made on Facebook, contained some of the quotes from Kirk. “Unfortunately, I think it’s worth the cost of a gun death every year.
“Thoughts and Prayers,” Vaughn added after the quote attributed to Kirk.
In a comment below the post, Vaughn said:
“I oppose (Kirk) and I think it shouldn’t happen today. Sorry,” she said according to the lawsuit.
Suzanne Swierc was fired from his job as director of health promotion and advocacy, an Indianapolis star who is part of the USA Today network. In her lawsuit, supported by the ACLU Indiana branch, she said she only confirmed that the posts she made were on her private Facebook account and that it looks only to friends. Nevertheless, screenshots from the post were widely shared across other accounts.
Swierc called Kirk’s death a “tragedy” and “can do it for his wife and children,” she said. She also said she believes in the resurrection and prays for his soul, the lawsuit said.
Her post also criticized his political activities. “Charlie Kirk’s death is a reflection of the violence, fear and hatred he had so. It’s a sad truth without excuseing his death.”
The lawsuit alleges that the right to free speech was violated.
In both cases, educator posts promoted social media complaints and attentional swelling. In the days after Kirk’s death, the well-known conservative account distributed screenshots of controversial remarks and urged employers to fire the poster. But the statements made by public school employees are examples of constitutionally protected free speech, the lawsuit said.
Calgol’s lawsuit in Iowa is called the former teacher’s social media “a blunt personal response to prominent political events: a speech on the issues of public opinion at the very heart of protecting the terms of the First Amendment.”
“This issue was handled in accordance with applicable federal and state laws and board policies,” district officials told the Des Moines Register. “Because this is both a HR issue and a pending litigation, the Oscaloosa schools are unable to provide further comment at this time. Our focus is on creating a safe, healthy and kind school that will engage all students in ensuring the power of learning.”
Cohoon, a lawyer for Vaughan in South Carolina, said public school employers must balance employee rights to free speech that employers need to avoid disruption to the workplace. He said the district did not show Vaughn’s comments disrupted the functions of her school or other schools in the district. Melissa Robinet, a spokesman for Spartanburg County District Five Schools, told USA Today that the county was sued but had no comment.
In a lawsuit against Ball State University, the ACLU in Indiana alleged that Swierc’s comments had no effect on her work and were finished solely to exercise her expressive power. The university says her comments caused a huge uproar for the university.
Contributions: Dinah Voyles Pulver and Phaedra Trethan, USA Today
