A liberal professor who celebrated the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk just got a taxpayer-funded reprieve from a federal judge, despite his vile social media rant calling the murdered father of two a “Nazi.”
Phillip Michael Hook, a tenured art professor at the University of South Dakota since 2006, took to his personal Facebook account just hours after Kirk’s September 10 assassination at Utah Valley University. In an expletive-laden post, Hook declared he didn’t “give a flying f***” about the Turning Point USA founder’s death, calling him a “hate spreading Nazi” and coldly adding he had “no thoughts or prayers” for the slain activist.
The 62-year-old professor’s rant quickly circulated online, triggering swift condemnation from South Dakota’s Republican establishment. Governor Larry Rhoden said Hook’s comments left him “shaking mad,” while House Speaker Jon Hansen joined legislative leaders in demanding immediate termination. Despite his tenured status, the state Board of Regents placed Hook on administrative leave and formally notified him of their intent to fire him.
However, Hook’s attorney Jim Leach fired back with a federal lawsuit, arguing the termination violated his client’s First Amendment rights. Unsurprisingly, the strategy paid off with U.S. Senior Judge Karen Schreier issuing a temporary restraining order Wednesday, forcing the university to reinstate Hook and blocking any disciplinary action until an October 8 hearing. Disturbingly, a Change.org petition supporting Hook has gathered nearly 10,000 signatures.
His reinstatement comes as similar cases emerge nationwide, with educators in Iowa and South Carolina also suing after facing consequences for social media posts celebrating Kirk’s murder.
In Oskaloosa, Iowa, an art instructor launched his own federal lawsuit after the local school board terminated him for celebrating Kirk’s murder with a Facebook post declaring “1 Nazi down.”
Meanwhile, in Spartanburg County, South Carolina, an elementary school teaching assistant is challenging her dismissal in court, claiming administrators violated her constitutional rights by firing her over a social media post that quoted Kirk’s own words about accepting “some gun deaths every single year” to preserve Second Amendment rights, followed by her sardonic “thoughts and prayers” commentary.”
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