A woman fired by Ball State University for a Facebook post criticizing far-right commentator Charlie Kirk has won $225,000 in a settlement, proving that your boss can’t actually fire you for having opinions on your private page - at least not without paying up.
Suzanne Swierc, former director of health promotion and advocacy at Ball State’s Muncie campus, was terminated last September after posting about Kirk, who was killed by a gunman on September 10, 2025, at a Utah university. The university cited “significant disruption” from the post, but the ACLU argued that Swierc was speaking as a private citizen on a matter of public concern, which is constitutionally protected.
“The First Amendment does not allow government institutions to retaliate in those circumstances, and this settlement reflects that,” said ACLU attorney Stevie Pactor. Ball State president Geoffrey Mearns defended the firing, claiming the backlash threatened enrollment and fundraising, but noted that the settlement was cheaper than fighting the lawsuit.
Swierc’s post called Kirk’s death a “tragedy” but also “a reflection of the violence, fear, and hatred he sowed,” adding that if you thought Kirk was wonderful, “we can’t be friends.” Her privacy settings were supposed to keep it off the public timeline - until someone screenshotted it and shared it widely, sparking outrage calls and threats.
Swierc isn’t alone: a Florida biologist got $485,000 for a similar firing, and a Tennessee professor was reinstated with a $500,000 settlement after posting a 2023 headline about Kirk’s views on gun deaths. Other lawsuits are still pending, suggesting that firing employees for social media posts is a costly way to avoid awkward conversations.