Educators Win Big Payouts in Free Speech Lawsuits Over Kirk

Nearly a year after conservative activist Charlie Kirk was assassinated on September 10, 2025, educators and public employees who were disciplined or fired for social media posts criticizing him are securing significant financial settlements in free speech lawsuits. Individual payouts now range from $225,000 to $1.9 million, with total settlements exceeding $3.4 million — raising fundamental questions about the boundaries of academic freedom and First Amendment protections for public employees.

Background

Charlie Kirk (1993-2025) was a prominent conservative activist and founder of Turning Point USA, as well as a close ally of President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance. He was assassinated while answering questions during a campus event at Utah Valley University. In the aftermath, Vice President Vance urged citizens to report anyone “celebrating” Kirk’s death to their employers, and Secretary of Education Linda McMahon said she would “like to see more” college faculty who celebrated Kirk’s death fired or suspended.

The response was swift and sweeping. According to USA Today, at least 50 people lost their jobs in the education sector alone within two weeks of Kirk’s death, while a Reuters investigation found that 600 people were fired across the private sector for posts about Kirk. The Texas Education Agency collected more than 350 complaints against teachers, with 95 still under investigation.

Key Settlements

The largest settlement to date came on June 29, 2026, when the University of Tennessee Board of Trustees approved a $1.9 million payout to Tamar Shirinian, a former assistant professor of cultural anthropology at UT Knoxville. Shirinian was suspended and fired after posting a Facebook comment stating the “world is better off without him in it.” According to the Knoxville News Sentinel, Shirinian will not be reinstated. Her attorney, Robb Bigelow, said, “My client is pleased that the parties reached a resolution.” Board Chair John Compton noted that “any continuing litigation would require significant time and attention, and financial resources.”

In May 2026, Ball State University agreed to pay $225,000 to former health director Suzanne Swierc, who was fired after posting that Kirk’s death “is a reflection of the violence, fear and hatred he sowed.” Swierc told IndyStar that she never regretted the post: “I have just as much right to say that as anybody else.”

Also in May, the state of Florida paid $485,000 to Brittany Brown, a biologist for the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission who was fired days after Kirk’s death for reposting a meme to her private Instagram story that mocked Kirk’s stance on school shootings. The ACLU of Florida, which represented Brown, said discovery in the case revealed that claims of operational disruption were fabricated. “All I wanted was my job back,” Brown said in a statement.

Perhaps the most extreme case involved Larry Bushart, a retired police officer in Perry County, Tennessee. Bushart posted a Trump quote meme mocking Republican mourning over Kirk and was arrested on September 22, 2025, held on $2 million bail for 37 days. The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE) represented Bushart and secured an $835,000 settlement on May 20, 2026. “I am pleased my First Amendment rights have been vindicated,” Bushart said.

Legal Implications

Under well-established Supreme Court precedent, including Pickering v. Board of Education and Garcetti v. Ceballos, public employees retain free speech rights when speaking as private citizens on matters of public concern. Employers must show that the speech caused disruption to operations — and generating controversy alone is not sufficient to warrant firing.

Aaron Terr, FIRE’s director of public advocacy, told NPR that “the size and frequency of these settlements shows that violating the First Amendment is expensive.” Adam Goldstein, also of FIRE, noted the irony: “It’s very weird to live in a world where Charlie’s wife can forgive the shooter, but we can’t forgive a teacher who quoted him.”

David Rubin, an attorney involved in several cases, warned of the broader danger: “Local government officials have extraordinary power to do things like throw you in prison. So anytime one of them thinks, ‘I’m going to punish someone for their speech,’ it’s a really big, huge problem.”

Analysis

The cases carry a deep political irony. Many of the lawsuits involve officials in Republican-controlled states, yet Kirk himself was a vocal advocate for free speech. Erika Kirk, his widow, publicly forgave her husband’s assassin at his memorial service. Conservatives who long condemned “cancel culture” now face accusations of engaging in it.

Jessica Levinson, a professor at Loyola Law School, raised concerns about government coercion: “When you have an elected official — like the vice president — calling for people to be fired, the question becomes whether or not that amounts to government coercion.”

What’s Next

Several lawsuits remain ongoing. In Iowa, an art teacher fired for a “1 Nazi down” post has filed a lawsuit. In South Carolina, a teacher assistant who quoted Kirk on gun deaths is pursuing legal action. The American Federation of Teachers has sued the Texas Education Agency over the 350-plus complaints filed against teachers.

As FIRE’s Terr noted, the settlements send a clear message: “That type of ripple effect would pay dividends far beyond the amounts of these individual settlements.” Whether that message will deter future overreach — or whether the next national tragedy will trigger another wave of firings — remains an open question.