Identity of Speakers
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Samantha Balemba Brownlee
Faculty/Staff
OtherAssociate Professor of Criminal Justice at Montana State University–Northern
Resources
Additional Information
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Incident Nature:
Social media
Other
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Incident Political Orientation:
Not Clear -
Incident Responses:
Faculty sanctioned
State Campus Free Speech Act
Title IX or other federal statute
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Incident Status:
No litigation
- Was Speech Code incident
Summary
On September 12, 2025, Montana State University Northern placed Associate Professor Samantha Balemba Brownlee on administrative leave after Facebook posts she made about Charlie Kirk were shared publicly. In her posts, she characterized Kirk as a “misogynistic, racist, homophobic, xenophobic asshole,” said “Not condoning violence, but maybe people are sick of the garbage he spews,” and later added “He died. Aw shucks.” The university released a statement condemning violence, stating that her remarks were hers alone and not institutional views, and pledged to follow its personnel review procedures while it evaluated the matter.
Chancellor Greg Kegel confirmed that the leave was imposed and said the university was assessing its response. As of late September, Balemba Brownlee remained on leave, and faculty reported uncertainty about how much latitude they had for social media commentary. The case stirred debate over application of Montana’s academic freedom policies and whether speech by faculty outside the classroom could be subject to discipline.
During the controversy, the case was amplified by the social media account Libs of TikTok, a conservative platform known for posting and criticizing liberal or progressive statements made by educators and public figures. The account claimed Balemba Brownlee was “allegedly not even a U.S. citizen” and called for her visa to be revoked. Its posts helped spread the controversy more widely, and other Montana educators and state employees who had commented critically about Kirk were also spotlighted, in some cases drawing threats and online harassment and prompting institutional responses.
On September 17, the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE) sent a letter to MSU Northern urging the university to uphold First Amendment protections for faculty speech and to clarify its procedures for reviewing the matter. The MSU Northern case occurred amid a series of similar incidents at universities nationwide following Charlie Kirk’s assassination.
