Raising Cane’s fires employees who allegedly cursed at Charlie Kirk supporters

FORT COLLINS, COLORADO: Raising Cane’s in Fort Collins confirmed on Friday, September 26, that it had fired employees who mocked and cursed at supporters of slain conservative activist Charlie Kirk on September 18.

The restaurant said the staff’s behavior was unacceptable and warranted termination.

Raising Cane's fires its employees

The Larimer County Republican Party reported on Thursday, September 25, that the incident happened when a small group of conservatives wearing MAGA hats and American flag shirts entered the restaurant after attending the vigil for Kirk.

They were then met by the employees, who started shouting  “f**k Charlie Kirk,” “execute,” and “Free Palestine.” The restaurant then confirmed to The Federalist that the incident resulted in the firing of the employees. 

“We received complaints about an incident that occurred last week at our Fort Collins, CO, Restaurant,” Raising Cane’s told The Federalist.

“Due to these complaints, we thoroughly investigated the incident, took appropriate action, and resolved the matter to the satisfaction of the Customers who made the complaints.” 

“Yes, we took immediate action and the individuals involved are no longer employed by Raising Cane’s,” the restaurant said in response to a follow-up question.

Professional repercussions for criticising Charlie Kirk

Ever since Charlie Kirk was shot and killed on September 10, across the country, employers have fired people for celebrating or joking about Kirk’s death.

On September 12, The Washington Post fired its columnist, Karen Attiah, for falsely quoting Kirk on the social media platform Bluesky: “Black women do not have the brain processing power to be taken seriously.”

Attiah, however, admitted that she misquoted Kirk, but doubled down on the accusation that he was a racist. Attiah has now filed a grievance against The Post, claiming that firing her violated its labor policy. 

Laura Sosh-Lightsy, an assistant dean at Middle Tennessee State University (MTSU), was fired for writing on Facebook that she had “zero sympathy” for Kirk. Clemson University also fired one faculty member and suspended two others on September 16 for mocking Kirk’s death.

Matthew Dowd, a political analyst at MSNBC, was fired on the day of Kirk’s death for stating on “Katy Tur Reports” that Kirk brought his own assassination onto himself by pushing so-called “hate speech.” 

The most popular such repercussion was the suspension of 'Jimmy Kimmel Live!' by Disney executives for three days, over Kimmel’s accusation that Kirk’s alleged shooter was part of the “MAGA gang”. The suspension was later lifted.

Kirk’s death has led to an increase in the politically polarized posts on social media, leading to political violence between liberals and conservatives, with some even facing professional repercussions, like losing their jobs for posts criticizing Kirk.