Schorn: Right-Wing Thought Police Trying to Shut Down Free Speech

USD political science professor Timothy Schorn says Republican attacks on professors’ First Amendment rights are part of a “national effort to chill speech and control thought“:

After multiple Republican candidates for governor advocated firing university professors recently for personal social media posts, one of those professors says South Dakota politics is sliding down a “dangerous path.”

“They’re trying to limit what universities can offer, what faculty members can teach, what we can say in the classroom, and now, apparently, outside of it,” said Timothy Schorn, an associate professor of political science and director of the University of South Dakota’s international studies program.

Schorn, who studies authoritarian governments and human rights, said he views the threats of termination as part of a broader, national effort to chill speech and control thought.

“If universities can’t tolerate uncomfortable ideas, then we’re no longer educating, we’re indoctrinating,” Schorn said. “And that’s exactly what these politicians claim to oppose” [Joshua Haiar, “Professor Called Out by Candidates for Social Media Post Says Politics Is on a ‘Dangerous Path’,” South Dakota Searchlight, 2025.10.11].

Dr. Schorn expanded on this critique of contemporary Republican brownshirtism in this blunt and detailed September 12 FB post, in which he said pretty much the same thing about dead hate-spreading Nazi Charlie Kirk that his colleague Michael Hook did, just without an f-bomb:

Since none of the dust and passion surrounding the murder of Charlie Kirk has settled, it’s time for a bit of detail, perspective, and truth about Mr. Kirk and his Turning Point USA (TPUSA). Kirk was by any objective standard a racist demagogue. Hate begets hate. And Kirk’s brand of exclusion, white nationalism, and bigotry inflamed hatred on both sides of the political spectrum.

Kirk denied racism existed because he wanted to protect the white privilege that elevated him. Many supported him for that very reason. He vilified and dehumanized those who were neither like him nor agreed with him. He cozied up to white supremacists and anti-Semites. We can look to his own speech, the statements from TPUSA, and the words of his friends and compatriots to see what he believed and advocated. (Show me a person’s friends and I’ll tell you what kind of person they are.)

I find it reprehensible that he was able to dismiss the fear and suffering of children, parents, teachers, and neighbors caused by mass shootings. In his own words, “It’s worth it to have a cost of, unfortunately, some gun deaths every single year so that we can have the Second Amendment.” Along with the inhumanity and carelessness of this statement, it is also a perversion of the Second Amendment. Ironically, there was a school shooting in Colorado the same day Kirk was killed.

He was absolutely honest about his racism. The unfortunate result was that he empowered racists, bigots, and white supremacists who went on to fearmonger, discriminate, and lie. He questioned the skill of black pilots. He accused African Americans of prowling around to target white people. He was equally honest about his 19th-century approach to women, suggesting they submit to their husbands. He encouraged racist immigration policies and was an advocate of the “great replacement” theory, which is nothing less than race-baiting and fearmongering, and could come directly out of Hitler’s playbook. He was anti-Islam and, again, resorted to fear-mongering to advance his Christian nationalism.

I was personally targeted by TPUSA. There was no call for violence, but I had a figurative target on my back; people, including students, were monitoring what I said in class, in the media, and in private, and planned to, and apparently did, “report me” when I said something that failed to satisfy the litmus test of the radicalized right.

As a friend put it to me: “If Charlie Kirk had created a watchlist for their profession where you could be put on it because some 19-year-old was in a bad mood, people would feel differently about him.”

Kirk and TPUSA were after me because I spoke against systemic racism and ignorance And, for the record, I stand by what I said. The research shows minorities, and especially African Americans, suffer under racial disparities in prosecutions and sentencing, and this results from institutional and systemic racism in lawmaking and selective enforcement. Oddly enough, when it comes to voting rights and discrimination, the Supreme Court has found the same thing. And what’s stupid (my own word choice they took issue with)? The fact remains legislatures, governing bodies, and candidates ignore the evidence and then engage in race-baiting to end policies and close centers and institutions that were intended to address racism and discrimination.

So, yup, I stand by my statements and they’re backed by facts and evidence. Was my language harsh? You betcha. Because the “snowflakes” know what the evidence is but choose to deny it to further their own political agenda. Republican candidates rushed to back counter-factual political statements and engaged in fearmongering and racebaiting. My posts and media statements certainly got someone’s attention. Because, more likely than not, it was a student or colleague who reported me to TPUSA. At one point, Charlie himself tried to sign up for my tweets. If the facts proved me wrong I would have changed my tune. They didn’t, and I won’t.

Now the 1st Amendment is under attack by those who know they can’t win on the merits of their arguments, and instead want anyone who disagrees with them fired and silenced. Unfortunately, institutions that should be protective of First Amendment rights, broadly defined, such as higher education, including my own system, are caving. The snowflakes are melting [Dr. Timothy Schorn, FB post, 2025.10.12].

Keep speaking the truth, professors. That’s your job.