University Of Tennessee Workers Union Protests For Teacher Fired Over Charlie Kirk Remarks

Image Credit: anthropology.utk.edu & classrooms.utk.edu

The Tennessee Conservative [By Olivia Lupia] –

On Wednesday, United Campus Workers, the higher education union of Tennessee, held a rally on the University of Tennessee Knoxville (UTK) campus demanding the reinstation of a professor who is being terminated over remarks about the murder of Charlie Kirk.

Dr. Tamar Shirinian, an assistant professor of cultural anthropology at UT Knoxville, was suspended from her position pending termination proceedings in September after she posted comments degrading Kirk on Facebook, calling him a “disgusting psychopath” and saying his children were better off in a world without him.

The post sparked immense backlash from the community and lawmakers, including U.S. Rep. Tim Burchett, and Shirinian was placed on administrative leave while the school began the termination process. She wrote an appeal letter to the University Chancellor, but it did not seem to have an impact on the school’s decision.

Shirinian then retaliated with a lawsuit, claiming her comments were protected under the First Amendment and that the school succumbed to political pressure from donors to fire her. The suit requests that the university drop the termination proceedings, reinstate her as a full tenure track faculty member, and allow her back into the classroom with financial compensation for back pay, emotional distress, “loss of enjoyment of life”, damages, and court costs.

In a show of support, United Campus Workers (UCW) protested on behalf of Shirinian, demanding she be reinstated and calling for protections over freedom of speech. UCW is comprised of faculty, staff, students, and graduate workers, and the event drew approximately 70 people who gathered outside the Humanities and Social Sciences Building. 

One member, Jordan Drake, believes the university’s response to Shirinian’s comments have caused fear of retaliation amongst other staff and students. “It was a little scary. It kind of represents an attack on free speech,” he said. “In response to that, a lot of workers are going to be fearful about sharing opinions in public and private spaces.” 

Drake called the school’s handling of the situation an “intimidation tactic”, saying, “There are definitely a lot of students, in fact, most that I have talked to, who feel some fear about what is going on and actions that the college is taking toward faculty.”

UCW is also circulating an online petition calling for Shirinian’s immediate reinstatement which has 1,363 signatures as of this writing. The petition also calls on the school to “publicly afform the constitutional right of all employees to speak as private individuals without retaliation”, reaffirm university policies “guaranteeing free speech to faculty in the UT Board of Trustees Policy”, and “establish clear UT Board of Trustees policies for any termination.”

While the school does have policies protecting free speech, UT Knoxville maintains Shirinian’s firing is justified under UT policy BT0006 which governs “Academic Responsibility and Tenure” because her comments, which were viewable by the public, reflected poorly on the university. 

According to Chancellor Donde Plowman, who instigated the firing, Shirinian had the right to publicly voice an opinion on Kirk’s death but was responsible for approaching it in a civil way, which the university holds she did not.

About the Author: Olivia Lupia is a political refugee from Colorado who now calls Tennessee home. A proud follower of Christ, she views all political happenings through a Biblical lens and aims to utilize her knowledge and experience to educate and equip others. Olivia is an outspoken conservative who has run for local office, managed campaigns, and been highly involved with state & local GOPs, state legislatures, and other grassroots organizations and movements. Olivia can be reached at olivia@tennesseeconservativenews.com.