'The world is better off without him in it': UT Knoxville might fire professor who mocked Kirk murder
A University of Tennessee anthropology professor, Tamar Shirinian, sparked outrage by posting on social media that the world is 'better off' without Charlie Kirk and calling him a 'psychopath.'
UT Knoxville is investigating the post, and UT System President Randy Boyd condemned it, citing the student code of conduct against celebrating violence.
A University of Tennessee (UT) professor sparked outrage after posting on social media that the world is “better off” without Charlie Kirk, calling him “disgusting.”
The message was attributed to UT Knoxville anthropology professor Tamar Shirinian. The post asserted that the world is better without Kirk and called him, among other things, a “psychopath.”
In an X post shared by Robby Starbuck, he calls out Shirinian for the apathetic comments she made on another user’s post following Charlie Kirk’s public assassination. Starbuck questions the validity of her position at the university.
Meet Tamar Shirinian. Tamar is a professor at @UTKnoxville. Someone sent this horrific post to my DM’s. UTK must take action. Email: mtindell@tennessee.edu 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
In Starbuck’s X post, he links to a screenshot of Shirinian’s comments about Kirk in the wake of his murder. Shirinian appears to have said that “he world is better off without him in it.”
She continues on to say that “even those who are claiming to be sad for his wife and kids....like, 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.”
Shirinian’s comments about Kirk were left as a reply to another user’s post who was sharing that they had “unfriended four people since Kirk’s assassination.”
“I get it, they’re mourning him because of his message but the content of his message was full of hate, genocide apologia and bigotry yet they’re treating him like the next best thing since Jesus,” reads the original post on which Shirinian made her comments.
UT System President Randy Boyd quickly took to social media to condemn the statements, adding that the school is investigating the incident. UT Knoxville’s student code of conduct explicitly condemns violence or intent to commit it, as well as harassment including “objectively offensive” statements.
“Celebrating or advocating violence and murder is reprehensible and has no place at the University of Tennessee,” Boyd posted on Sept. 15. “UT Knoxville is actively investigating the matter and will take decisive action to ensure it is addressed with the full weight and attention it deserves.”
As of publishing time, the link to Shirinian’s profile page on UT’s website goes to the UT anthropology home page. Shirinian’s profile has been scrubbed.
Previously, the profile reported that Shirinian was a cultural anthropologist interested in “the relationships between gender, sexuality, nationalism, political-economy, and reproduction.”
“I am an anthropologist by training, but my research and teaching draws on queer studies, feminist studies, critical theory and psychoanalysis to think about questions of kinship, power, love, sexuality, sovereignty, and postsocialism,” her biography on Duke University’s website still states.
Campus Reform has reported that several people in higher education made controversial remarks after Charlie Kirk’s assassination last week.
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At the University of Montana, some students laughed at the shooting, applauded a man giving a thumbs-down to a speaker, and even suggested a Trump shooting would be justified.
At the University of Mississippi, an employee was fired for sharing a post accusing Kirk of embodying white supremacy.
Meanwhile, Kirk’s group Turning Point USA has seen a sharp rise in student interest, with tens of thousands of chapter inquiries and record turnout at events honoring him.
St. Bonaventure University student government president Emma Gavazzi is also under review after allegedly celebrating Charlie Kirk’s assassination on Snapchat. University officials confirmed a formal review.
Campus Reform has contacted Tamar Shirinian for comment. This article will be updated accordingly.
