If Charlie Kirk Was an Advocate for Free Speech, Why Am I on His Watchlist?

Since his death, Kirk has been hailed as an exemplar of free speech. The watchlist his organization created was designed to intimidate professors into silence.

(Screenshot, C-SPAN)

No matter what I write here, however measured and intentional my statements are, someone will try to misconstrue my words and use them to get me fired from my job. If they have power and influence, they’re more likely to be successful, especially in 2025, in the wake of the public killing of 31-year-old conservative youth activist Charlie Kirk.

When I heard Kirk was shot, I was genuinely shocked. My second or third thought was that the Professor Watchlist, which his organization, Turning Point USA, curates, is still online. The next day, I taught two classes, “Writing Rap” and “The ‘Black Voice,’” a seminar on pop culture, race, history and listening. My classes are informed by the research that will be published in my forthcoming book, Being Dope.

As I was responding to a question about the shooting, I told students that my name was added to the list last year and that the names on it are organized by the campuses where we work. At some point during the conversation, one of my students asked her classmate closest to the door to make sure it was closed so that the automatic lock was engaged. I probably wouldn’t have noticed the gesture if not for the graduate student who gave knowing looks at each student in recognition of the unspoken precaution.