UCLA axes DEI director Johnathan Perkins for expressing excitement over Charlie Kirk assassination

A University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) professor has been terminated for expressing excitement over Charlie Kirk's September 2025 assassination. Johnathan Perkins, who taught diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), was fired last week following an internal investigation— and is now raising money for legal fees.

Perkins had made several controversial social media statements in the days following Kirk's murder. He referred to the late Turning Point USA founder as a "bigot" and stated that he was "happy" about Kirk's death. 

"Good riddance," Perkins wrote on Bluesky, adding in a follow-up post, "It is OKAY to be happy when someone who hated you and called for your people's death dies—even if they are murdered."

He later wrote, "I'm always glad when bigots die."

UCLA cited several policy violations in a termination letter obtained by the LA Times. The violations included "workplace violence prevention" and posts that "referenced or appeared to endorse violence or death" and made "demeaning or generalized remarks about demographic groups."

"Given the nature of your role as a Director of Race and Equity, the university has determined that this conduct significantly undermined trust in your leadership and adversely affected the office's effectiveness and credibility," the letter said.

Perkins was employed by UCLA for the past five years and earned an annual salary of $137,000. He was recruited while working in Harvard's legal office and has a multi-year history of leading DEI programs on campus and training students.

He told the paper that UCLA gave him a 250-page investigation that contributed to its decision. However, Perkins does not intend to publicly release the investigation, as he plans to sue the university for wrongful termination. The ex-director has since launched a GoFundMe to help with his relocation costs and legal fees.