A new federal lawsuit alleges Eastern Florida State College violated the First and 14th amendments in terminating a former accountant who posted on social media about conservative activist Charlie Kirk, following his murder earlier this year.
The complaint was filed Wednesday on behalf of Erika Santos, who previously handled grants for the Brevard County college. Santos is represented by attorneys with the American Civil Liberties Union of Florida and Kwall Barack Nadeau, a Clearwater-based law firm focused on labor and employment litigation.
Nationwide and in Florida, people have lost jobs for criticizing Kirk, who co-founded the right-wing nonprofit Turning Point USA.
RELATED: The life and legacy of Charlie Kirk
Michelle Morton, a staff attorney with the ACLU of Florida, said Santos’ termination is part of a larger, troubling trend of attempts to suppress the kind of free, non-violent speech protected by the U.S. Constitution.
“In our country, the whole idea of free speech is that we want all of these opinions out there. You might not agree with them. You might find them disgusting, frankly,” Morton said. “But the ability to have them out there means you can also express all of your opinions. And the best way to deal with opinions that you don't agree with, whether you're the government or a private citizen, is to fully debate them.”
According to the complaint, EFSC terminated Santos because she appeared to “condone if not celebrate the death of Charlie Kirk,” based on comments and posts she shared on social media. Santos’ attorneys say that’s not true.
“It's absolutely false,” Morton said. “She was clear in her commentary that she did not condone this, that she hated that it happened, and she did not wish ill for anyone.”
Instead, “(Santos) was joining this debate, along with so many people …. on what his legacy should be. And that is in no way condoning what happened,” Morton said.
In a written statement, Eastern Florida State College called Santos’ comments about Kirk’s death “vile and disgraceful.”
“After investigation, it appeared the comments condoned if not celebrated the death of Charlie Kirk, a death that resulted from gun violence on a college campus in front of thousands of college students,” the college’s statement said.
“Professionalism and good judgement are expected of all employees, but especially those responsible for handling public money, and in this circumstance these comments did not align with our expectations nor our institutional mission.”
In addition to violating Santos’ First Amendment rights, the lawsuit also argues EFSC violated the 14th Amendment, which guarantees equal protection under the law.
“EFSC selectively disciplined Santos based on her viewpoint while ignoring comparable conduct by others,” the lawsuit reads.
A press release from the ACLU of Florida states another EFSC employee previously shared a post on social media implying that former President Barack Obama supported the perpetrators of the terrorist attack on the United States on Sept. 11, 2001. That employee remains employed by the school, according to the press release.
In a separate case, the ACLU of Florida is also representing a former biologist with the Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission who was terminated for sharing a post about Kirk after his murder. Both lawsuits underscore how Florida is gaining the reputation of “a place that just doesn't tolerate competing ideas or freedom of thought,” Morton said.
“When you suppress speech, it has unintended consequences,” she said. “(That) just gives the government more power to end up deciding what is truth.”
