Not everyone is mourning the death of Charlie Kirk. His rhetoric was polarizing to put it lightly, but in some cases his words and actions actually put others in harm’s way. One professor, who found herself on the right-wing podcaster’s “hit list” has spoken out in the days since the shooting to describe the terrifying experience she went through at the hands of Kirk.
“I am on Charlie Kirk’s hit list.” Journalist, writer, and college professor, Dr Stacey Patton writes on her substack. She speaks of the “Professor Watchlist” which was run by Turning Point USA. The site presents itself as a digital watchlist that simply names professors that supposedly discriminate against conservatives, spread anti-American values, and promote leftist propaganda. However, Patton claims that it’s more like “a digital hit list for academics who dare to speak truth to power.”
Patton received threats of violence thanks to Kirk and his watchlist
Patton claims that once her name appeared on the list in 2024 things took a dark turn. In the weeks that followed she was sent all sorts of threatening messages from “Mostly white men.” The men would call her all kinds of names and slurs and even threatened violence against her. The university PR lines were overwhelmed and Patton was even offered an escort due to the seriousness of the situation.
“The flood was so relentless that the head of campus security reached out to offer me an escort, because they feared one of these keyboard soldiers might step out of his basement and come do me harm.”
Dr Stacey Patton isn’t alone
Unfortunately this story is not too uncommon. Patton claims that many of the professors that ended up on Kirk’s list found themselves on the receiving end of some rather nasty harassment.
Basically anyone who stood against his values would be targeted in what Patton referred to as “coordinated abuse.” Some even received death threats from angry alt-right individuals who supported Kirk.
And make no mistake, Patton pins a lot of the blame for this on Charlie Kirk. “That is the culture of violence Charlie Kirk built.” She writes, “He normalized violence. He curated it, monetized it, and sicced it on anyone who dared to puncture his movement’s lies.” She calls out the hypocrisy of those who have labeled him as a “civil debater,” and put him on a pedestal in the days since, when he’s “spent years terrorizing educators.”
She calls out those on both sides that are mourning Kirk when he incited so much hatred and violence in the world, sweeping his past misdeeds under the rug in order to paint him as an almost saint-like figure when that is far from the truth. His death doesn’t change who he was in life and that’s what Patton draws attention to.
