Alberta professor reinstated after put on leave over Charlie Kirk social media posts

A memorial for Charlie Kirk is seen at Huntington Bank Field during the first half of an NFL football game between the Green Bay Packers and the Cleveland Browns Sunday, Sept. 21, 2025, in Cleveland. (AP Photo/David Richard)

EDMONTON — The University of Alberta says a law professor is back on the job after being placed on leave over social media posts surrounding the death of conservative activist Charlie Kirk.

But the educator at the Edmonton-based school says questions remain over why it happened in the first place.

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Florence Ashley, who uses they/them pronouns, says they were reinstated a week ago after being notified they were being placed on non-disciplinary leave on Sept. 14.

At that time, the university said the action was taken while a review was conducted amid concerns for community safety.

“This is not an acceptable way to behave if this was really only about security concerns,” Ashley said Monday.

“This certainly has an impact on my reputation as a teacher and as a professional. This is quite concerning.”

The school said Monday its review had concluded and it has reinstated Ashley.

“It was determined there is no imminent risk associated with this incident,” the university says.

The university did not answer questions about whether it was reviewing the professor’s posts or the threats it faced.

Ashley said they were not asked to participate in the review and worries the action was taken to suppress free speech.

Ashley said they posted on social media about how Kirk’s death should not sanitize what they called his “hateful legacy.”

“People may certainly agree or disagree with it, but it was not violent, hateful, harassing, discriminatory, illegal or otherwise beyond the scope of academic freedom,” Ashley said of the post.

Ashley said the university told them the posts were garnering too much attention and that groups were receiving threats.

They said the university’s decision to put them on leave has given faculty the impression that they were being reprimanded for bringing attention to Kirk’s history.

Ashley’s temporary ban from teaching was one of several ripple effects of Kirk’s death in Canada.

A week before Ashley’s leave was announced, the University of Toronto said it put a religion and political science professor on leave after she shared what the institution called concerning reactions to Kirk’s killing.

Around that time, Ottawa police also charged a man over alleged threats made to a local high school in response to a staff member’s social media post about Kirk.

A principal at a public school in Toronto’s Scarborough neighbourhood said a teacher had also been temporarily suspended after students were shown a “violent” video connected with a “recent tragic event in the United States.”

Vigils were also held in some Canadian cities following Kirk’s death.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 29, 2025.

Fakiha Baig, The Canadian Press