Jeffrey L. Harrison, a retired UF law professor, lost his emeritus status following a political post he made on Facebook.
Harrison made a post about the killing of Charlie Kirk, a popular conservative activist, the same day Kirk was shot and killed on a college campus in Utah.
“I did not want him to die,” Harrison wrote in a Facebook post, referring to Kirk. “I reserve that wish for Trump.”
UF responded to Harrison’s post just over a week later on Sept. 19 in a statement that left Harrison unnamed.
“The University of Florida has been made aware of a retired faculty member who issued a post on social media that is raising concerns,” UF wrote in an X post. “In accordance with the university’s policies and regulations, UF has rescinded this individual’s emeritus status.”
Emeritus status, granted to faculty members by vote after retirement, gives recipients UF-affiliated email accounts, as well as courtesies such as parking, use of the library and admission to athletic events, according to university regulations.
UF has no further comment outside of what it posted online, university spokesperson Cynthia Roldán said.
The university released its statement the day after another conservative activist, Scott Presler, posted on X calling for Harrison to “lose any affiliation” with the university and any current duties. The post, which included screenshots of Harrison’s profile on UF’s website and of his social media accounts, garnered over 16,000 likes and 130,000 views.
Harrison’s profile has since been removed from the UF Levin College of Law website, and the link now throws a 404 error.
In a follow-up Facebook post today, Harrison said he received “a lot of hateful commentary” after his original post was screenshotted and republished on X.
Harrison, who specialized in economics, contracts and antitrust before retiring in 2020, is not the first individual to face consequences for his post.
Three professors at Florida Atlantic University in South Florida were put on administrative leave this week after commenting on Kirk’s death. Four teachers in public K-12 schools in Osceola County are being investigated but have not yet lost their jobs as of Sept. 15.
On Sept. 18, popular show host Jimmy Kimmel had his talk show, “Jimmy Kimmel Live!,” suspended due to comments Kimmel made regarding the assassination.
Kirk visited UF in the Spring as part of his “American Comeback Tour,” where he toured universities across the country to debate with college students.
Public opinion
One of Harrison’s former students, Lake County Commissioner Anthony Sabatini, said his former professor’s social media comments were crass, disgusting and horrible. UF made the right decision in taking away Harrison’s emeritus title, he said.
“I think professors who have that title are seen as envoys to the public, and he brought great disregard and embarrassment to the university,” Sabatini said.
Derek Bambauer, the Irving Cypen professor of law at Levin, said the action against Harrison was appalling and disturbing.
“This is very clearly a case of retaliation by the university administration against professor Harrison for taking a particular point of view,” Bambauer said.
Bambauer said he contacted interim Dean Merritt McAlister for clarity on the situation, who confirmed the decision to revoke Harrison’s status did not involve the college.
“This was a university-level action,” Bambauer said. “The law school does not have control over decisions about removing emeritus status.”
Bambauer specializes in internet censorship, and he said the actions against Harrison will hurt the university’s climate, especially in regard to the exchange of free speech.
“It will make it difficult for us to remain a top five public university,” Bambauer said. “It’s very hard to hire excellent scholars and researchers when they are going to be looking over their shoulder for this type of action.”
Many current and former students voiced their opinions on the matter on various social media platforms. On X, some students condemned UF for the action against Harrison and accused the university of restricting free speech and “submitting to authoritarianism.” Alumni who took this stance commented their reluctance to donate further funds to UF.
Other alumni and UF fans praised UF’s decisions to revoke Harrison’s emeritus status and expressed pride online.
A comment supporting Harrison in “standing his ground” has been added to his Rate My Professor profile, where Harrison received a teaching rating of 4.1/5. Many students who have taken his course described him as helpful and hilarious, though some reviews express distaste at the lack of structure in his course.
Harrison’s post on Kirk’s assassination was not the first time he shared his political opinions online. In 2022, Harrison wrote an opinion column for the Gainesville Sun where he expressed disdain toward Gov. Ron DeSantis and his conservative values. He also pushed for UF administration to “stand up” to the governor rather than endorse him.
As of Sept. 20, Harrison’s Facebook account has been deactivated, and his original post about Kirk is no longer accessible. The Alligator reached out to him for comment, but Harrison did not respond in time for publication.
Contact Leona Masangkay at lmasangkay@alligator.org. Follow them on X at @leo_amasangkay
Leona is a second-year journalism student and the Fall 2025 Santa Fe College reporter. They previously worked on the audience and growth team over the summer as a social media strategist. In their free time, Leona enjoys going to the gym, listening to music and watching Marvel movies.
