Woman fired from Indiana university over Charlie Kirk post wins $225,000 settlement [View all]

A woman fired by an Indiana university over her Facebook post criticizing far-right commentator Charlie Kirk after he was killed will receive $225,000 to settle a lawsuit that accused her former employer of violating her free speech rights, the woman’s attorneys said on Tuesday.

The American Civil Liberties Union announced the settlement in a federal lawsuit it filed last year on behalf of Suzanne Swierc against the Ball State University president, Geoffrey Mearns.

Swierc worked as director of health promotion and advocacy at Ball State’s campus in Muncie, Indiana, before she was fired last September. Ball State cited Swierc’s private Facebook post about Kirk as the sole reason for her termination, saying it caused “significant disruption” to the campus.

Swierc’s firing violated her constitutional rights because she was “speaking as a private citizen on a matter of public concern”, said Stevie Pactor, an ACLU attorney in Indiana.

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/may/26/indiana-woman-fired-charlie-kirk-post-settlement


wanted to add my own note, the ACLU has our backs and I think this is another great example of why we should donate to that fine institution when we can