BUZZ
Key Takeaways
- Professors Alexander Avina and Lara Sheehi criticized New College of Florida's decision to honor Charlie Kirk with a statue, labeling it as part of a right-wing agenda and a manifestation of 'odious' behavior.
- Avina, an Arizona State professor, argued that the statue is part of a larger hostile takeover of the college by conservatives.
- Sheehi suggested that 'white supremacy' is at 'the heart' of the plans to honor the Turning Point USA founder.
Two professors recently criticized New College of Florida’s plans to honor the late conservative leader Charlie Kirk with a statue on campus while speaking on a “radical” left podcast.
One, Arizona State University Professor Alexander Avina, described the statue as part of the right’s “odious” takeover of the college campus. Another scholar suggested the move is an instance of “white supremacy.”
“For them to do this whole thing about a statue and talk about free speech and civility discourse, it’s just complete bulls—, right? But they know what they’re doing. They enjoy this, I think,” Avina said on an episode of Millennials are Killing Capitalism, published Monday. The podcast bills itself as a platform for “radical” leftist ideologies.
Last week, the Florida public college announced plans to commission a statue of Kirk, the founder of Turning Point USA who was killed earlier this month at Utah Valley University.
According to an X post by the college, the statue will serve as a reminder of its commitment “to defend and fight for free speech and civil discourse in American life.”
Avina suggested the move is hypocritical. He said New College was “essentially the victim of a hostile takeover” by “right-wing” “ilk” like Chris Rufo, a conservative researcher and member of the college’s board.
“They completely destroyed and undermined and radically transformed what that university used to be in Florida,” the Latin American history professor said.
Avina said New College used to be a “very liberal, accepting space in the deep south for people who didn’t quite fit in or were ostracized or attacked for who they were.”
Also on the podcast was Lara Sheehi, a former George Washington University professor of clinical psychology who left in 2024 after being accused of discriminating against Jewish and Israeli students, according to The GW Hatchet student newspaper. Now, she is a research fellow at the University of South Africa.
Sheehi said this “return of the statues” by the right is “symbolic,” and recalled a few years ago when statues were being “ripped down” by leftist protesters.
Although she did not mention any specific cases, The College Fix’s Cancel Culture Database has tracked dozens of incidents where statues of historical figures were removed or defaced because some considered them to be offensive.
Sheehi referred to conservatives as “fascists,” saying Trump and his supporters want to “purposefully” roll back the left’s progress and “rewrite everything.” And they do it in a “pompous way because that’s what fascists do,” she said.
Leaders on the political right “also brag about it” and “make sure that every single one of us sees and feels and believes that we are at their mercy and that they can do anything they f—ing want,” Sheehi said.
Later in the podcast, Sheehi suggested that “white supremacy” is at “the heart” of the plans to honor Kirk.
Kirk, 31, was shot and killed Sept. 10 while speaking during a Turning Point USA event at Utah Valley University.
The suspect in his death, Tyler Robinson, 22, of Utah, allegedly spoke about hating Kirk and wrote “hey fascist catch!” on one of the bullet casings, The College Fix reported.
MORE: Florida professor garbed in ‘DEI’ T-shirt defends anti-Kirk comments
