Free speech advocacy group defends Penn prof from investigation after praising suspected UnitedHealthcare CEO killer
The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE) has come out in defense of a University of Pennsylvania professor who praised suspected killer Luigi Mangione.
On Dec. 17, FIRE issued a letter to the school warning that Professor Julia Alekseyeva is protected by the First Amendment after she took to social media to praise Mangione as the 'icon we all need and deserve.'
The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE) has come out in defense of a University of Pennsylvania professor who praised suspected killer Luigi Mangione.
On Dec. 17, FIRE issued a letter to the school warning that Professor Julia Alekseyeva is protected by the First Amendment after she took to social media to praise Mangione as the “icon we all need and deserve.” Mangione has been charged with the murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson.
”FIRE is concerned that Penn is investigating Cinema and Media Studies professor Julia
Alekseyeva for her recent social media posts regarding the murder of United Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson,” the letter states. “While some may find Alekseyeva’s posts offensive, they are unquestionably protected by Penn’s written commitment to free speech. We urge Penn to uphold these commitments and end its investigation into Alekseyeva’s speech.”
FIRE also writes that, “Penn’s own guidelines require that the university be a place that ‘affirms, supports and cherishes the concepts of freedom of thought, inquiry, speech, and lawful assembly,’ and correctly state that ‘[t]he freedom to experiment, to present and examine alternative data and theories; the freedom to hear, express, and debate various views; and the freedom to voice criticism of existing practices and values are fundamental rights that must be upheld and practiced by the University in a free society.”
The organization even argues that calls for the professor’s resignation amount to a “politically motivated witch hunt.”
”Social media remarks on subject matter entirely unrelated to the speaker’s
professional obligations have no bearing on one’s ability to educate students in the classroom and provide no justification to launch an investigation into Alekseyeva that, given the circumstances, can hardly be anything other than a politically motivated witch hunt,” the letter continues.
[RELATED: UVA professor claims Trump shooting was ‘staged’ and a tactic to win votes from ‘idiots’]
This is not the first time that FIRE has defended professors following controversial remarks.
In July, the group demanded that former Bellarmine University Professor John James be reinstated after he responded to the assassination attempt of Donald Trump by writing, “If you’re gonna shoot, man, don’t miss.”