# Fired for posting about Charlie Kirk > A year after Kirk's killing, the people who posted critical comments are still counting the cost, and most say they'd say it again. - Title: Fired for posting about Charlie Kirk · BBC News | Shortify - Summary: A year after Kirk's killing, the people who posted critical comments are still counting the cost, and most say they'd say it again. Speech has legal… - Keywords: free speech, charlie kirk, employment, cancel culture, social media, news, world, Fired, posting, Charlie, Kirk, BBC News - Source: BBC News — https://bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cj06jgl9qzlo - Published: 2026-09-13T00:49:08.46+00:00 - Read time: 3 min - Topics: free speech, charlie kirk, employment, cancel culture, social media, news, world ## The dream life, then gone Gerald Bourguet had a house with a pool, a four-month-old son, and a job covering pro basketball. Then he posted about Charlie Kirk. ## What he actually wrote Hours after Kirk was shot at Utah Valley University on 10 September, Bourguet called him an "evil man" and said his supporters had stayed quiet about school shootings. > evil man ## Why he posted He watched the online eulogies pile up and could not square them with things Kirk had said for years. > I had seen the way that people were talking about this person - kind of eulogising him and lionising him and it bothered me ## A genuinely split figure Kirk founded Turning Point USA and made conservative ideas land with young people. To opponents, his comments on race, immigration, guns and gender were offensive. ## Fired, doxxed, gone Screenshots went viral. Bourguet lost his job, his address was posted online, threats came by text, and the family left the state with their baby. ## Starting over at 35 They came back only to sell the house. He now lives somewhere the BBC agreed not to name. > At age 35, I am having to start over in a lot of respects… I wouldn't wish this on my worst enemy ## Hundreds, not a handful Bourguet was one of hundreds fired or disciplined. Some got reinstated or paid millions. Others rebuilt from nothing. ## The pressure campaign Laura Loomer, with nearly 2 million followers on X, told Kirk's critics to expect their professional futures ruined. > prepare to have your whole future professional aspirations ruined ## The vice-president joins in JD Vance told supporters to name people celebrating the murder, and to contact their bosses. The White House said endorsing political violence must be condemned. > When you see someone celebrating Charlie's murder, call them out. And hell, call their employer ## Cancel culture, reversed Critics on the left noted the same people who had spent years attacking cancel culture were now running one, and that criticising Kirk is not celebrating his death. ## A lawmaker defends it South Carolina Republican Jordan Pace wanted state universities defunded if they didn't act. Trump re-shared one of his posts. > Cancel culture can be good, it's bad when it's applied in the wrong ways ## More than 600 cases A Reuters tally last November counted over 600 firings and disciplinary actions, likely an undercount since small cases never made the news. ## What got people fired A professor's Facebook comment. A Delta flight attendant's "good riddance". An Office Depot worker who wouldn't print vigil flyers. > the world is better off ## Fired without mentioning Kirk Theatre professor Darren Michael posted a 2023 news screenshot of Kirk on gun deaths. Biologist Brittney Brown reposted a meme about the same position. > I was absolutely gutted. It was like the entire world just completely flipped on its head in a moment ## The settlements got big Brown took $485,000, about twelve times her salary. Darren Michael got $500,000 and his job back. Tamar Shirinian settled with the University of Tennessee for $1.9m. ## Who can actually sue Wins mostly went to government employees and union members with speech protections. Most private workers are at-will and can be fired for no reason at all. ## Money is not justice Brown wanted her job, not a payout. Shirinian regrets her tone but not the sentiment. Bourguet regrets only what it cost his family. > I don't regret what I said. I don't regret the way that I said it. I do regret the ripple effects ## Key takeaway Speech has legal protection from the government, not from your boss, and at-will employment is where that gap gets expensive.