UNIVERSITY PARK, Fla. — After Charlie Kirk’s assassination, supporters of the conservative activist searched for his critics’ social media posts and spotlighted those who celebrated his death on sites such as the “Charlie Kirk Data Foundation” and “Cancel The Hate.”
While he served as a guest host of “The Charlie Kirk Show” podcast on Monday, Vice President JD Vance urged listeners to participate in the activists’ campaign.
“When you see someone celebrating Charlie’s murder, call them out, and, hell, call their employer,” Vance, 41, said. “We don’t believe in political violence, but we do believe in civility -- and there is no civility in the celebration of political assassination.”
FBI special agents accused Tyler Robinson of firing the shot that struck Kirk, 31, in the neck as he spoke to students on Wednesday at Utah Valley University. Utah Gov. Spencer Cox said Robinson, 22, was in a romantic relationship with someone who identified as transgender and who was cooperating with authorities.
Kirk, a co-founder of Turning Point USA, a nonprofit organization with a mission to “identify, educate, train, and organize students” to start chapters. The organization also published “watchlists” to unmask “radical” leftist school boards, professors, and deans as part of the resources for students.
Kirk’s supporters at Florida International University’s main campus in Miami-Dade County organized a Monday night vigil. Gabriela Burstein, of College Republicans at FIU, said it’s a tribute to a man who embraced public debate.
“The legacy that he is going to leave is a more active youth,” Burstein said before the vigil.
EMPLOYERS IN SOUTH FLORIDA
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, the University of Miami’s Miller School of Medicine, and the iMater Academy were among the employers releasing statements about social media posts reacting to Kirk’s assassination.
“FWC leadership took swift action, terminating the individual. We expect all our employees to conduct themselves with the utmost professionalism,” a spokesperson for the FWC wrote in a statement published on Monday on X.
UM terminated a neurologist on Saturday over a post that a spokesperson for UM described in a statement on Instagram as “unacceptable public commentary” and added, “expressions that condone or endorse violence or are incompatible with our policies and values are not acceptable.”
Adam Hasner, the president of Florida Atlantic University, released a statement on Saturday on X announcing that a tenured faculty member was on administrative leave pending the results of an investigation into “repeated comments on social media.”
The iMater Academy, a charter school in Hialeah, released a statement on Sunday on Facebook reacting to an employee’s post and announcing the employee’s termination.
“We immediately addressed the situation, and the individual responsible will not be returning to our campus,” a spokesperson for the school wrote.
VILLAGE OFFICIAL IN MIAMI-DADE
In the village of Palmetto Bay, Steve Cody, a councilman, released a statement apologizing after deleting a social media post that resulted in calls for his resignation.
“I regrettably made a significant error in judgment,” Cody wrote in the statement, which also included an apology to Kirk’s family, “and to anyone who was offended or hurt.”
Mark Merwitzer, the village’s vice mayor, said he was demanding Cody’s resignation and said the issue was a top priority.
“The things that he had said on social media do not represent this community,” Merwitzer said about Cody’s first post.
Merwitzer also said he expected an “overwhelming” crowd to do the same during a public meeting at City Hall on Monday night.
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- Two Florida universities take action after faculty comments on reported assassination of Charlie Kirk
- After Kirk’s killing a growing chorus of conservatives wants his critics ostracized or fired
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