MUNCIE, IN — Officials at Ball State University say they are reviewing social media posts by two BSU employees concerning the Sept. 10 assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk.
Kirk, a 31-year-old supporter of President Donald Trump, was fatally shot Wednesday afternoon as he conducted an event with students at Utah Valley University.
On Friday, authorities said they had arrested a suspect in Kirk’s killing — Tyler Robinson, a 22-year-old Utah resident.
In one posting — on her personal Facebook account — Suzanne Swierc, Ball State’s director of health promotion and advocacy, announced that “if you think Charlie Kirk was a wonderful person, we can’t be friends.”
Swierc called Kirk’s death “a tragedy,” and said she “can and do feel for his wife and children.” She also said that based on her religious beliefs, she would “pray for (Kirk’s) soul.”
She also referred to Kirk’s strong opposition to gun control efforts, and his stance on other issues.
“Charlie Kirk’s death is a reflection of the violence, fear and hatred he sowed,” Swierc wrote. “It does not excuse his death, AND it’s a sad truth.”
“Charlie Kirk excused the deaths of children in the name of the second amendment,” she concluded.
Swierc’s comments were drawing many online responses on Friday, many of them critical of her and referring to Ball State.
A reposting of Swierc’s comments drew a brief response — “!!” — from Elon Musk, former senior adviser to Trump and reported to be the world’s wealthiest person.
Musk’s response was on X (formerly Twitter), which he owns.
Also drawing reaction was a Facebook post by another Ball State employee, Felicia Gray, assistant lecturer of elementary education.
In response to another person’s posting, Gray said Kirk’s killing “feels like karma paid a visit.”
“I mean he condoned killing immigrants and trans people,” she wrote. “He was quoted as saying mass shootings are the process you pay for the second amendment and it was worth it. Don’t go clutching your pearls… what the hell do you people expect?”
Gray said it was “the beginning of the darkest period in our country’s history,” referring to Trump as a “rapist dictator” and “the Christian Taliban of White Nationalists.”
Late Friday afternoon, Ball State posted a release on Facebook about the Kirk-related postings by university employees.
“The administration at Ball State is aware of social media posts by two university employees,” the post said. “Both posts were on the employees’ persona accounts, and the posts do not reflect the culture of our campus nor the enduring values of the university.
“The administration is gathering additional information about the posts in order to determine what discipline, if any, is appropriate and permissible under the First Amendment to the Constitution.”
On Thursday, Steven Knipp resigned from his post as president of the Muncie Human Rights Commission after his Facebook comments on Kirk’s assassination drew condemnation.
In the wake of the Utah shooting, Knipp wrote that Kirk “deserved this, and I hope he is only the first!”
Members of Muncie City Council, which had appointed Knipp to the commission, demanded he resign.
Douglas Walker is a news reporter at The Star Press. Contact him at 765-213-5851 or at dwalker@muncie.gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Muncie Star Press: Ball State reviewing online posts that university employees made about Kirk assassination
Reporting by Douglas Walker, Muncie Star Press / Muncie Star Press
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
