UT professor cites 2016 Twitter message to fight suspension over Charlie Kirk comments

University of Tennessee professor Tamar Shirinian says she did not deserve a suspension for her social media comments on the death of political activist Charlie Kirk and a similar case in 2016 sets precedent for her to return to teaching.

Shirinian claims Chancellor Donde Plowman and UT President Randy Boyd conspired to penalize her after she stated the world was a better place after Kirk’s assassination in a reply to a friend’s comments online.

The suit also mentions a suspension was lifted for UT law professor Glenn Reynolds after a 2016 Twitter message that directed drivers to run over protestors in Charlotte, NC after the shooting death of resident Keith Scott.

Shirinian wants back pay plus damages and to return to her department at UT, arguing her rights under the Constitution have been violated. Similar suspensions were handed down at East Tennessee State University in September to two faculty members who also had negative comments about Kirk after his death. Those professors then decided to file for retirement.