Image Credit: University of Tennessee Knoxville & Canva
Tennessee Conservative News [By Paula Gomes] –
A lawsuit against the University of Tennessee on behalf of a professor who was terminated for her comments about Charlie Kirk following his death has reached a resolution.
Tamar Shirinian will receive a settlement to the tune of $1.9 million for being fired in a move that Shirinian said violated her First Amendment rights. The settlement was agreed to by the University of Tennessee System Board of Trustees and is pending approval from the Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti and Governor Bill Lee, among other state officials.
While Shirinian will not be reinstated in her position at University of Tennessee at Knoxville, she is reported to be “very pleased with the outcome” of the litigation.
During a nonpublic session, the board’s audit and compliance committee met to vote on the deal, with board chair John Compton recusing himself. He later stated that continuing litigation would require time, attention, and financial resources better directed toward advancing the University of Tennessee’s mission. Compton also expressed continued confidence in the leadership of President Boyd and Chancellor Plowman.
Two days after Kirk’s assassination, Shirinian replied to a social media post saying, “The world is better off without him in it. Even those who are claiming to be sad for his wife and kids… like, his kids are better off living in a world without a disgusting psychopath like him and his wife, well, she’s a sick f*** for marrying him so I don’t care about her feelings.”
State Representative Chris Todd (R-Madison County-District 73) called for Shirinian to be fired saying, “There should be no tolerance for this action.”
University of Tennessee at Knoxville took swift action against Shirinian, initially placing her on administrative leave citing failure to meet civil engagement standards, which then led to her termination as Assistant Professor of Cultural Anthropology.
In her time at the university, Shirinian studied “right-wing nationalist movements, and the links these formations have within geopolitics” while her research specialities included queer anthropology, queer theory, feminist theory, feminist anthropology, transnational feminisms, kinship studies, socialism and postsocialism.
About the Author: Paula Gomes is a Tennessee resident and reporter for The Tennessee Conservative. You can reach Paula at paula@tennesseeconservativenews.com.
4 Responses
THE law is the law but she should never teach any where again
All I will say is….go ahead folks, keeping sending your “kids” to these institutions thinking it’s safe because it’s a southern school. This is who is responsible for their indoctrination.
Have friends who sent their son to the University of Alabama. 4 years later and tons of money spent, he’s a totally changed individual. Forsaken God, ungrateful, angry, and drinking the socialism Kool Aide. They thought it was safe to go there. Their thinking was “the indoctrination only happens in California or up north.”
I need to remind readers that this is the same university (unfortunately, the one I graduated from) that employed a sociology/psychology professor who couldn’t answer the question “What is a Woman?” for Matt Walsh’s 2022 documentary. Few of the nation’s “higher learning” institutions are safe from this type of stupidity.
Once again, the Greasiest of squeaky wheels gets rewarded for bad behavior… Sick!!