LibsOfTikTok got a professor fired, it cost BSU half a million
Suzanne Swierc, Ball State administrator, posted on her private Facebook account that Charlie Kirk's death was "a tragedy" but also a "reflection of the violence, fear, and hatred he sowed." She wasn't wrong. @LibsOfTikTok twisted it into "she justified assassination," Elon amplified it, Indiana AG Todd Rokita piled on calling her "vile" and celebrating her firing.
Ball State panicked and fired her Sept 17 for "significant disruption." Swierc got death threats. Her colleagues got threatened on campus.
But here's where it gets interesting: she sued with ACLU backing, citing First Amendment violation. Ball State settled for $225,000 in May 2026. The university also burned nearly $500,000 on legal defense. Total damage to BSU: roughly equivalent to 80 students' tuition.
Swierc said the settlement felt "a little bit like closing the lid on a coffin." She also said she doesn't regret the post and wouldn't take it back.
So Libs of TikTok manufactured an outrage campaign, destroyed someone's career with a deliberate misreading, and it cost the university a half million dollars to clean up the mess. The person they came for ended up fine. That's not a victory.
$225,000 Suzanne Swierc, a former Ball State University administrator, was awarded $225,000 after being fired over a facebook post about Charlie Kirk. The university also spent nearly $500,000 defending the case. On Sept 10, 2025, on her personal time and from a private account, she posted that Kirk’s death was "a tragedy," that she felt for his wife and children and that she could "pray for his soul." She also wrote that his death was "a reflection of the violence, fear, and hatred he sowed" while stressing that this "does not excuse his death." However, on Sept 12, @LibsOfTikTok shared the post, claiming it justified the assassination. Elon Musk, @robbystarbuck and others amplified it. Indiana AG @AGToddRokita called the comments "vile", questioned her fitness for leadership, featured the post on his official portal & later celebrated her firing. Swierc received death threats, including one that listed her home address. BSU staff who fielded the resulting calls said they had been threatened with violence and felt uncomfortable being on campus. "I do not regret the post I made and I would not take back what I said," she later stated. On Sept 17, Ball State fired her, citing "significant disruption" to university operations. On Sept 22, backed by the ACLU of Indiana, she sued the university president for violating her First Amendment rights. On May 26, 2026, the ACLU announced that Swierc and BSU had reached a $225,000 settlement. She said it felt "a little bit like closing the lid on a coffin." The university spent nearly $500,000 in legal fees in addition to the settlement.
Source
x.com