Criticising Charlie Kirk Cost Hundreds Their Jobs

In September 2025, Gerald Bourguet said he believed he had finally reached the life he wanted. He and his wife had bought a house with a pool, had welcomed a baby boy and Bourguet was writing about professional men’s basketball full time.

That changed after he made a series of online posts criticising Charlie Kirk, the conservative activist, within hours of Kirk’s death on 10 September. Kirk was fatally shot while speaking on the campus of Utah Valley University.

In the posts, Bourguet called Kirk an “evil man” and argued that he had devoted his life to hateful causes. He also criticised Kirk’s supporters, saying they had not spoken out strongly about school shootings.

“I had seen the way that people were talking about this person - kind of eulogising him and lionising him and it bothered me,” Bourguet told the BBC.

Kirk, who founded the Christian youth organisation Turning Point USA, was a highly divisive figure in US politics. Supporters on the right praised him for his charisma and for shaping conservative arguments for younger audiences. Opponents said his views on issues including race, immigration, gun control and gender identity were offensive.

Online Backlash Triggers Job Loss And Safety Fears

Screenshots of Bourguet’s comments spread quickly. He said he was dismissed from his job, that his home address was shared online and that he began receiving threatening messages.

Concerned for their safety, Bourguet and his family left the state with their four-month-old child. They returned months later to sell the house and then permanently relocated.

A year on, Bourguet said he does not regret what he posted. However, he acknowledged the impact on his life. “My life will never be the same after this,” he said, adding: “At age 35, I am having to start over in a lot of respects… I wouldn’t wish this on my worst enemy.”

Bourguet spoke to the BBC from a new location that the broadcaster agreed not to name. His former employer, PHNX Sports, did not respond to the BBC’s request for comment.

Bourguet was one of hundreds of people who were fired or disciplined after making critical comments about Kirk following his killing. While some were later reinstated or received compensation running into millions of dollars, others said they had to rebuild their careers from scratch.

Across the US, employers including both private and public organisations acted quickly in response to social media pressure. Reliable national figures are hard to compile, but a Reuters tally published last November found more than 600 cases of firings or discipline. Reuters said the true figure is likely higher because not all incidents were reported in regional or national outlets.

Firings Follow Comments, Reposts And Satire

Disciplinary action varied widely, ranging from remarks about Kirk’s death to reposts of older content. In Tennessee, anthropology professor Tamar Shirinian was suspended and later fired for a Facebook comment saying “the world is better off” after Kirk’s killing.

In another case, a Delta Air Lines flight attendant was dismissed after posting “good riddance” in response to Kirk’s death. Office Depot fired an employee who refused to serve a customer seeking to print flyers for a Kirk vigil. Delta declined to comment and Office Depot did not respond to a request for comment.

Some cases also targeted indirect posts. Darren Michael, a theatre professor in Tennessee, was fired after he shared a screenshot of a 2023 news article covering Kirk’s comments on gun control, including a quote suggesting gun ownership rights were worth it even if it led to some gun deaths each year.

Florida’s Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission fired biologist Brittney Brown after she reposted a meme that satirised Kirk’s position on gun violence in light of his own shooting. Brown told the BBC she was “absolutely gutted”, describing it as if “the entire world just completely flipped on its head”.

Lawsuits Yield Payments, But Not For All

Since Kirk’s killing, dozens of lawsuits have been filed nationwide by people dismissed for their posts, arguing that terminations breached free speech rights. Some cases ended in substantial settlements. Brown agreed to a financial payout of $485,000 (£355,000), about 12 times her annual salary.

Michael was reinstated by Austin Peay State University, and in January the school agreed to pay him $500,000 to settle his claims. The University of Tennessee reached a $1.9m settlement with Shirinian to resolve her lawsuit over the “better off” comment. Under the agreement, she would not be reinstated and she agreed not to apply again for roles at the university. The BBC said the University of Tennessee did not respond to its request for comment.

An arbitrator ordered the Washington Post to rehire opinion journalist Karen Attiah, who was dismissed for online posts that included criticism of “performative mourning” for a white man associated with violence. Several other cases remained pending, the BBC found.

Legal Wins, But Little Satisfaction

But legal wins did not necessarily leave employees feeling satisfied. Brown said she wanted her job back and questioned the cost to public finances after her firing. “How much taxpayer money did they waste on this when I barely made $40,000 a year?” she said.

Shirinian said she had wanted to return to her job but took a settlement to avoid a drawn-out legal process. She apologised to the university days after her suspension and told the BBC her comment was an “emotional outburst” that she had not intended to go public, though she said she did not regret the underlying sentiment.

Private Workers Face Greater Risks

For those in private employment, the position is often harder. In the US, many private-sector workers are on “at-will” contracts, allowing dismissal without a stated reason.

Bourguet said he is unlikely to succeed in a lawsuit challenging his termination because of that framework. He said he has struggled to find work since then, and although he started a podcast, he doubts it can provide enough income. He said leaving the country is now on the table.

No Regrets Over Speaking Out

Despite the consequences, people who spoke to the BBC said they had reflected and still did not regret speaking out. Brown said her former employer should have regrets, while Bourguet said he stands by his criticism of Kirk’s message.

He added: “I don’t regret that line of thinking… I don’t regret what I said. I don’t regret the way that I said it. I do regret the ripple effects that came from it and the way that they impacted me, my career, my family, and my son.”

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13 September 2026

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