In the wake of the assassination of TPUSA founder Charlie Kirk, we have seen far too many members of the professional class -- doctors, nurses, journalists, professors, and public school teachers -- post incredibly vile things online. They not only celebrate Kirk's death, but some have even called for more bloodshed in the name of political ideology.
To call it eye-opening is an understatement.
Thankfully, the outpourings of love and support far outweigh the awful comments. It was incredibly refreshing to see that a professor at the University of Wisconsin-River Falls campus is not only breaking ranks with some of his fellow professors, but is reminding us what universities are all about.
Wow!!!! Read this comment from a University of Wisconsin-River Falls professor, which he posted on Wisconsin Right Now Facebook. Make this go viral!! Profile in courage!!!!! Get this guy on national TV. https://t.co/ZBPxfPQSMS pic.twitter.com/A1yC1geXKR
— Wisconsin Right Now (@wisconsin_now) September 15, 2025
Here is what the professor, Trevor Michael Tomesh, wrote:
I’m a University professor here in Wisconsin.
Obligatory disclaimer: these views are mine alone and do not reflect the views of the University of Wisconsin System.
The fact that Charlie was killed on a college campus for expressing his opinions and ideas — the one place in society what’s soul [sic] purpose is to express opinions and ideas — should be a watershed moment for all universities.
Every single member of every single university community — faculty, administrators, staff and students — should be lamenting this as it spells the death of the university.
There should have immediately been a press release from every school in the United States condemning this act of ideological violence.
Students should have been told about the gravity of this situation.
Faculty should have been coached on how to explain what freedom of speech looks like, and every classroom should have an entire lecture devoted to why what Charlie was doing was fundamental to the fabric of American society.
Instead hundreds of professors and students celebrated and continue to celebrate.
To date, there has been no statement from my university or the university of Wisconsin system.
It's incredible the University of Wisconsin system couldn't be bothered to comment on the assassination of Charlie Kirk. Only a few years ago, then-Chancellor Rebecca Blank issued a very long statement about why the University of Wisconsin-Madison removed a "racist" rock from its campus.
Tomesh's post continues:
Not a single one of my students heard from any of their professors about this.
How do I know? I asked them. Not only did I ask them, but I gave them a 50 minute lecture about why this moment is one of the darkest in American History and how we must pull back from this and encourage dialogue or the American project is dead.
Conservative students and faculty are taking this silence on behalf of administrators as an endorsement of violence against them.
When little 5’4” 96 lb grandma, Sister Cindy Smock came to our campus to talk to kids about Jesus, they had sent out a campus wide email telling the students that if they need to talk about their traumatic experience that councilors [sic] are available and there’s a safe space where they can go to cry and play with toys. They then assembled a task force to determine how to handle people like Cindy and the trauma she inflicts on students.
The powers that be at UW-River Falls decided that having a Christian talking about Jesus on campus was so traumatic for students, they set up counseling and safe spaces with toys.
They set up a task force to address the mental and emotional scarring they believe the gospel inflicted on young adults.
As we like to say, priorities.
This is a point Tomesh makes in the closing of his post:
When my students witnessed a man — someone they grew up watching since they were kids — have his throat blown out with a 30 06 round at a college campus much like our own doing something that they are meant to be doing… nothing.
I’ve written, called and pleaded with admins on campus to JUST SAY SOMETHING!
No returned calls. No emails back. No invitations to talk about this. Nothing. I had one email the day of telling me (because they know conservative students actually talk to me) that I can send students to the woke counselors in the diversity, equity and belonging building on campus.
Oh — and I got an email reminding me that if I am going to identify myself as a professor, I need to add a variation of the disclaimer I left at the top of this comment.
So, I am angry. I am disappointed. I am scared s***less.
But when I got done with my lecture (which I intend on publishing — I did record it), nearly every student came to me and shook my hand. One student (Korean, I believe) even gave me a bow.
These kids can be saved. There is so much potential in gen z — but if the only thing they hear from the institutions of higher learning is extremist propaganda from radical Marxists, many more Charlie Kirk’s are going to happen and America will be extinct within the century.
Tomorrow is another school week. I am going to continue to fight like hell. But I can’t do this alone, though. I need your help.
Professor Tomesh is correct. Universities are supposed to be bastions of free thought, debate, and learning -- where people with divergent viewpoints come together to discuss and exchange ideas to the betterment of all parties involved.
For many years, Charlie Kirk did just that. He went to campuses and engaged in good-faith debates because that is the purpose (or was the purpose) of universities. Instead, institutions of higher learning have turned into hotbeds of "extremist propaganda from radical Marxists," as one professor pointed out.
And therein lies the problem. Hopefully, we can change that for the better.