An associate professor at Florida Atlantic University who was placed on paid leave for her social media posts about Charlie Kirk has been reinstated after the university’s investigation found that the posts did not disrupt operations on campus.
Professor Karen Leader received backlash for comments she made on X about Kirk, where she reshared several posts after Kirk’s assassination that were accusing Kirk of racism, sexism, and homophobia. She also reposted an account with the name “I Smoked Charlie Kirk.”
After this, Leader was suspended from FAU, one of two faculty members who were disciplined over posts about Kirk. She has since been reinstated.
A report by FAU determined that Leader’s posts were “speech by private citizens on matters of public concern.” It also found that her behavior was on her personal account and unrelated to university business, and found no evidence that Leader had “disrupted university operations.”
Leader was asked by Campus Reform if FAU should adopt a policy that protects faculty from discipline over personal social media activity, but Leader said “no.”
”I believe the upper administration at FAU needs to focus on university priorities—research, teaching, mentorship, student safety, excellence in our diversity—instead of taking orders from ideological flamethrowers,” Leader told the outlet. She also said she believes the Trump administration has “endangered” the FAU community.
