The murder of Charlie Kirk on a university campus exposes academic institutions‘ silence compared to their extensive statements during the 2020 George Floyd protests.
When a man is publicly executed for his views on a university campus, one would expect institutions of higher education to respond immediately — if only to confront the chilling effect such violence unleashes. One would expect them to reassure students that their campus remains a place for free inquiry. One would expect them to guarantee that future speakers of every political persuasion are not only welcome but safe from mortal threat. Yet following the gruesome assassination of conservative icon Charlie Kirk, universities have remained largely silent.
This silence is a far cry from the deafening chorus that followed George Floyd’s death in 2020, when student inboxes overflowed with moralizing emails from university presidents, provosts, deans and entire departments. At my alma mater, the University of Chicago, Dean of Students Jay Ellison declared Floyd „murdered“ before any court had ruled; Provost Ka Yee C. Lee pronounced Floyd’s death „racially motivated“; and President Robert J. Zimmer claimed „true freedom and equality“ were out of reach in America.
Departments piled on too: the English Department limited graduate admissions to only those in Black studies; the Physics Department ordered participation in a day-long work stoppage in solidarity with the Black Lives Matter riots; and the History Department pledged allegiance to the Marxist, fraudulent Black Lives Matter organization. Not one of these statements condemned the riots destroying American cities — instead, they sanctified them as „justice.“
Ironically, the University of Chicago brags about its „Chicago Principles“, which commit the school to open debate and free inquiry, and its „Kalven Report“, which declares the university’s institutional neutrality on political and social issues to protect that freedom. Don’t be fooled. These commitments are marketing brochures for donors, not the reality on campus.
