Image Credit: University of Tennessee & social media screenshots
By Simon Olech – Franciscan University of Steubenville – The College Fix –
An assistant professor of cultural anthropology at the University of Tennessee at Knoxville who faces termination after posting extreme commentary over the assassination of conservative Charlie Kirk has apologized and seeks for her potential termination to be rescinded.
Tamar Shirinian was placed on administrative leave and termination proceedings were launched after posting controversial comments regarding the assassination of Kirk, which went viral.
“The world is better off without him in it,” the professor had stated in part, adding “his kids are better off living in a world without a disgusting psychopath like him and his wife, well, she’s a sick f*** for marrying him so I dont [sic] care about her feelings.”
The former assistant professor was notified of her pending termination in mid-September.
“The university has taken swift action against a faculty member who has failed to meet our expectations for civil engagement,” according to a university statement. “Her actions endorsing violence and murder do not represent the university or our values. The faculty member is out of the classroom, placed on administrative leave, and termination proceedings have begun.”
The scholar has since penned an appeal letter to University Chancellor Donde Plowman to reconsider the decision. In the letter, Shirinian apologized for her post, calling it “ineloquent and heartless.”
She added that “it was insensitive and, I assure you, uncharacteristic of me as a person, a mother, a friend, and someone who advocates for social justice and respect for all. And, for that, I apologize. These were words, written out of anger and grief, which now haunt me.”
Shirinian also stated that “I have been a long-time advocate for peace, as I see peace and civility as the only means to the making and sustaining of a world where everybody’s rights and safety will be protected,” despite previously expressing approval of a political figure’s public murder.
She blamed her comments on Charlie Kirk due to his positions on the war in Gaza, DEI, and the LGBTQ+ community. Shirinian said her identity as a member of the LGBTQ+ community and “a person who prides themselves on their humanity” made Kirk’s commentary difficult to bear.
As a professor at the University of Tennessee, she taught a variety of classes, including Queer Anthropology, Feminist Anthropology, Decolonization, and Ethnographies of Trauma, her faculty bio states. Her “Scholarly & Creative Works” include “The Gender and Sexuality of Armenia,” “Objects of Struggle: Woman, Environment, Colonialism,” and “A Queer Plea for the End of the Nation.”
“The Gender and Sexuality of Armenia” was the “the first academic event in the United States that places Armenian studies in direct conversation with gender and sexuality studies.” The journal article, published in the Duke University Press, includes a provocative cover with female genitalia.
In “A Queer Plea for the End of the Nation,” the scholar frames herself “as a queer scholar deeply invested in the social, political, and economic potentials of reimagining the world” and advocates for a postnational future.
The article’s biography tells readers she specializes “in queer theory, transnational feminisms, political economy, postsocialism, psychoanalysis, and medical and psychological anthropology.” The attached profile page from UTK is no longer active.
The College Fix contacted both Professor Shirinian as well as the University of Tennessee System for comment and has yet to receive a reply.
Shirinian’s comments mirror other college professors’ responses to Charlie Kirk’s assassination, including teachers at George Washington University and Southern University.
***This article reprinted here by express permission from The College Fix.
