Tennessee Taxpayers to Pay $1.9 Million Settlement to Fired Professor Who Celebrated Charlie Kirk’s Assassination * The Gateway Pundit * by Ben Kew
Tamar Shirnian during an interview with Knox News back in February.
The University of Tennessee has agreed to pay former assistant professor Tamar Shirinian $1.9 million to settle a lawsuit after she was fired over a social media post celebrating the death of Turning Point CEO and conservative activist Charlie Kirk.
Under the settlement, approved by the University of Tennessee System Board of Trustees, Shirinian will not return to her teaching position.
The agreement still requires approval from Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti and Gov. Bill Lee.
“My client is pleased that the parties reached a resolution,” Shirinian’s attorney, Robb Bigelow, said.
“We believe the resolution reflects the seriousness of the issues while allowing everyone to move forward.”
University of Tennessee to pay $1.9M to professor fired over Charlie Kirk comment https://t.co/56uuKPk89Z
— Knox News (@knoxnews) June 29, 2026
Because the University of Tennessee is a publicly funded institution, any settlement it pays ultimately comes from public funds, meaning Tennessee taxpayers will bear the cost.
The dispute began in September 2025, days after Kirk was assassinated during an event at Utah Valley University.
“The world is better off without him in it,” she wrote in a Facebook post.
“Even those who are claiming to be sad for his wife and kids… [they] are better off living without a disgusting psychopath like him.”
“His wife, well she’s a sick fuck for marrying him so I don’t [sic] care about his feelings.”
BREAKING: Professor at @UTKnoxville Tamar Shirinian has been FIRED after vile post celebrating Charlie’s death
“His kids are better off living in a world without a disgusting psychopath like him and his wife is a sick f*** for marrying him.”
FAFO you POS https://t.co/fn9QeaF7VB pic.twitter.com/7npBpFmQGv
— Libs of TikTok (@libsoftiktok) September 15, 2025
Screenshots of the post quickly spread online. After a formal investigation, she was terminated from her position.
Meet Tamar Shirinian. Tamar is a professor at @UTKnoxville. Someone sent this horrific post to my DM’s. UTK must take action. Email: [email protected] to ask President @randyboyd to act now. Also, why do we even have queer theory or queer anthropology specialists at… pic.twitter.com/3mcxTzettr
— Robby Starbuck (@robbystarbuck) September 14, 2025
Shirinian sued the university in federal court in October 2025, alleging her dismissal violated her rights. Plowman finalized her termination in February 2026.
A federal court filing states that both sides are finalizing the settlement agreement.
Ben Kew is a writer and editor. Originally from the UK, he moved to the U.S. to cover Congress for Breitbart News and has since gone on to editorial roles at Human Events, Townhall Media, and Americano Media. He has also written for The Epoch Times, The Western Journal, and The Spectator.
You can email Ben Kew here, and read more of Ben Kew's articles here.
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