A federal Judge temporarily reinstated a University of South Dakota art professor on Wednesday after the school placed him on administrative leave following a negative social media post about Charlie Kirk. The professor referred to Kirk as a “hate-spreading Nazi” the same day the conservative activist was assassinated on a Utah college campus.
The judge ordered the school to halt all efforts to fire professor Phillip Michael Hook, according to court documents obtained by The Washington Post.
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The post at the center of the case
“I’m sorry for his family that he was a hate spreading Nazi and got killed,” Hook’s post from Sept. 10 reportedly read. “I’m sure they deserved better.”
The tenured professor also asked why there had not been more outrage about the fatal shooting of Democratic Minnesota state lawmaker Melissa Hortman and her husband earlier this summer.
According to The Post, in a follow-up post the same day, Hook apologized to “those who were offended” and said he removed his previous post.
Numerous firings and suspensions in wake of Kirk’s death
In the wake of Kirk’s killing, numerous companies and academic institutions have terminated or placed employees on leave over remarks they made about the assassination.
Hook’s post sparked criticism from Republicans, including South Dakota Gov. Larry Rhoden and South Dakota House Speaker Jon Hanse.
The university and South Dakota’s Board of Regents reported receiving “hundreds of calls and message[s]… calling for the removal of Professor Hook.”
Letter sent to Hook
Hook subsequently received a notification from the dean of the university’s College of Fine Arts, Bruce Kelly, informing him that the school was seeking to suspend and then fire him over his comments about Kirk.
The professor filed a lawsuit this week that requested a judge temporarily block the university’s disciplinary action. He alleged the school’s effort was an unconstitutional attack on free speech and violated Hook’s First Amendment rights.
The judge’s order
U.S. District Judge Karen E. Schreier ruled that even though the professor is a public employee, he made his comments as a private citizen about a subject of public concern. She cited that Hook had written the Facebook post in the privacy of his own home while off of work, which legally protected his speech under the First Amendment.
Now, the school will be forced “to temporarily set aside their determination to place Hook on administrative leave” and “reinstate Hook’s position as a Professor of Art at the University of South Dakota” until at least Oct. 8, when a court hearing on the matter is set to take place, according to court documents.
Neither Hook nor the South Dakota Board of Regents, which oversees the university, has have yet to comment on the ruling.
Meanwhile, students have created an online petition calling on state officials to reinstate Hook. It has garnered thousands of signatures.
