Across the country, some people who have posted unsettling social media videos and messages celebrating the assassination of conservative activist and influencer Charlie Kirk are losing their jobs.
Kirk, 31, was shot and killed by a sniper during a Sept. 10 rally at Utah Valley University.
Tyler Robinson, a 22-year-old Utah man, has been arrested and faces capital murder and other charges related to Kirk’s killing.
Kirk was a top ally of President Donald Trump and popular with young conservatives and Evangelicals.
There are scores of TikTok and other social media videos and posts from progressives and other left-wing advocates celebrating Kirk’s killing. Some claim Kirk’s conservative messages are fascist, misogynist or racist. Others call him a Nazi.
Some of Kirk’s critics have posted videos of themselves singing and dancing to the conservative activist’s assassination.
Backers of Kirk and Trump have responded by reposting those social media communications, publishing information about their jobs and calling for the controversial posters to be fired from their jobs.
And in some cases, that’s exactly what’s happening.
“Offensive or politically charged posts referencing figures like Charlie Kirk are often viewed as damaging to the employer’s reputation, client relationships, or internal morale — grounds sufficient for immediate termination,†said Chad Cummings, CEO and an attorney with Bonita Springs, Florida-based Cummings & Cummings Law.
Danny Karon, an attorney and author who also teaches classes at law schools at Ohio State University and University of Michigan, said many employers have codes of conducts (including related to social media).
Karon said First Amendment free speech exercises are not protected in the workplace and could be deemed cause for firings.
“Those words might be within the First Amendment, but you may be outside of your workplace’s codes of conduct or ethics,†said Karon, who is managing partner of Ohio-based law firm Karon LLC.
AT-WILL TERMINATIONSFlorida-based Office Depot fired employees at a store in Michigan after they refused to print posters for a prayer vigil after Kirk’s death.
Clemson University in South Carolina, Middle Tennessee State University, the Nasdaq stock exchange, the Carolina Panthers National Football League team, as well as hospitals, nonprofits and local school districts in Idaho, Florida and other states have fired or suspended employees who have glorified or cheered Kirk’s murder.
“The majority of employees who are losing their jobs because of postings concerning Charlie Kirk are almost certainly at-will employees,†said Christopher Migliaccio, an employment attorney and founder of the Dallas-based law firm Warren & Migliaccio LLP.
“This means an employer is able to terminate an employee for almost any reason that is not prohibited by law, such as discrimination or retaliation,†Migliaccio said.
Montana is the only U.S. state that limits at-will employment terminations. In Montana, such firings are allowed only during the first 12 months of employment.
Laws in Montana and California also limit firing employees for social media posts unless employers can show harm to their business.
Nadine Jones, an attorney and founder of New Jersey-based General Counsel Support Services, recommends employers remind their staff of social media policies and to respect others’ beliefs.
“My advice to companies would be to circulate their code of conduct to employees with an email cover citing to those sections talking about non-hostile work environments, no bullying, and about respecting each other’s beliefs or positions,†she said.
Other employment attorneys say absent some kind of discriminatory enforcement, at-will terminations are difficult for workers to challenge, but there are instances where employers can face legal exposure.
“It would be extremely difficult for an employee to thread the needle to show discriminatory conduct by the employer based on a protected category (race, religion, sex, gender, marital status or disability) based on comments about Charlie Kirk’s death,†said Camron Dowlatshahi, partner with the MSD Attorneys, which has offices in Los Angeles and New York.
CROSSING THE LINEBut there are some potential perils for employers.
“Employers could be accused of discrimination if they impose rules randomly, terminating one employee for damaging posts, but not terminating an employee who did something similar. In states that protect off-duty behavior, or where the employee has a contract or union protections,†Migliaccio said.
More broadly, Cummings said social media terminations or sanctions against workers can run afoul of the National Labor Relations Act.
The New Deal era law strives to protect workers from being axed for talking about workplace matters and potential organizing.
Conservatives say Kirk was killed for his conservative and Christian beliefs.
Kirk was a strong backer and ally of President Trump. He also opposed abortion rights; diversity, equity and inclusion policies; and favored traditional Christian values.
“Charlie Kirk was assassinated because he was an outspoken Christian. This is undeniable,†argues Bill Donahue, president of the Catholic League.
Some of the controversial social media posts celebrating Kirk’s assassination allude to his conservative Christian beliefs.
Other conservatives view the slain influencer as a martyr.
“Charlie Kirk is a martyr. Martyrs create movements. We need more of this dialogue on our college campuses. But we can do that in a way like Charlie did. It was thoughtful dialogue,†said U.S. Sen. Steve Daines, R-Montana.
CHILLING FREE SPEECH?Some free speech advocates have concerns about the chilling of discourse brought on by the firings.
“It’s disgusting to see people using their freedom of speech to celebrate Charlie Kirk’s murder on social media and further divide our country. I swore an oath to uphold the laws of Montana and our Constitution, including the freedom of speech, regardless of how vile it is,†said Montana Gov. Greg Gianforte.
The Republican governor referenced a 2023 law passed to protect workers from dismissals for their social media posts.
The free speech group the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE) is voicing concern about the chilling effects of the firing and lawmakers and other government officials pressing employers to fire workers over their Kirk posts.
That can amount to censorship via government pressure on the private sector, akin to conservatives’ concerns during the pandemic and debates over vaccine mandates.
“As free speech advocates, it places us in a painful position. Charlie Kirk’s assassination was an attack on free speech and open discourse. In a free society, we must not be afraid to express our views, no matter how strongly some might oppose them. That’s the point of free speech,†said FIRE Vice President Adam Goldstein. “But it is precisely for that reason why we must not respond to mockery of Kirk’s assassination by canceling everyone who offends us: because that too creates a society where people are afraid to express themselves.â€
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