A former biologist with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission filed suit against top state agency leaders, claiming she was unlawfully fired last month for a social media post made from her private Instagram account in connection with the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk.
The lawsuit, filed Tuesday in federal court in Tallahassee, alleges that the termination "was punishment for expressing a view disfavored by certain state officials, which constitutes unlawful retaliation in violation of her First Amendment right to free speech."
The former state employee, Brittney Brown, is a biologist who worked for the FWC for over seven years, earning consecutive performance-based raises and being awarded by her peers, according to the lawsuit.
The incident leading to Brown's termination occurred while she was on vacation, when she reposted a satirical post on her private Instagram story about the "tragedy of school shootings that referenced the death of Charlie Kirk," said her attorneys.
Brown is being represented by the ACLU of Florida and the law firm of Benjamin, Aaronson, Edinger & Patanzo, PA.
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The original post appeared Sept. 10 on @awhalefact, an Instagram account with about 153,000 followers. It's described as "a parody/satirical account that pretends to speak on behalf of a whale."
In the post, @awhalefact wrote: "the whales are deeply saddened to learn of the shooting of charlie kirk, haha just kidding, they care exactly as much as charlie kirk cared about children being shot in their classrooms, which is to say, not at all."
It was a reference to Kirk's past controversial remarks on school shootings.
That same day, Brown reposted it to her private Instagram account, meaning it was only visible to her approved followers. The reposted "story" remained online for 24 hours and disappeared.
"The post did not condone Mr. Kirk's killing nor did it call for further violence, rather, it conveyed a satirical indifference — a viewpoint fully covered by the First Amendment," said the ACLU of Florida in a statement announcing the lawsuit.
Despite being temporary and on a private account, the post was screenshotted and later uploaded to X by the account "Libs of TikTok," which shared a screenshot of Brown's post next to her LinkedIn profile and called for her immediate firing, said her attorneys.
"Within 24 hours, FWC wrongfully complied and terminated Brown — violating her First Amendment rights," the lawsuit claims.
"The comments and actions of this individual are not in line with the FWC, our values, or our mission," the FWC posted on X on Sept. 15 without naming the employee.
The ACLU asserts that Brown's firing is part of a wider effort by state leadership to target workers with differing political views.
"We see the state's action plainly for what it is: a concerted effort to purge state employees with political beliefs that differ from our state's current leadership," said Bacardi Jackson, Executive Director of the ACLU of Florida. "The years-long effort to censor our students, professors, and now state employees has become Florida's trademark but also a dangerous attempt to erode the limits of the First Amendment to favor those in power."
Carrie McNamara, staff attorney of the ACLU of Florida, said "the basic freedom to talk about the biggest public issues of the day, to debate and even condemn the political views of others, is fundamental to our democracy."
"[Florida] cannot and should not respond to political violence by infringing on the free speech rights guaranteed by the First Amendment," she added. "It goes against all we stand for as a free society."
Gary Edinger, an attorney with Benjamin, Aaronson, Edinger & Patanzo, PA, condemned the trend of political firings.
"It is deeply disturbing and undemocratic to see such firings take place across the state and in the country," Edinger said. "We know that it will take all hands on deck to protect our cherished freedoms and constitutional rights."
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