Florida college finalizes partisan descent with Kirk statue

Future students at New College of Florida will have the privilege of casting their eyes upon a statue of supposed free-speech hero Charlie Kirk. 

The college made the announcement Tuesday on X with a rendering that looks little like Kirk and more like Robert F. Kennedy Sr.

Does Kirk have a particular connection to Florida or New College? Not really! Have the students at New College been crying out for a Kirk statue? Doesn’t seem like it! But the school has been the crown jewel in Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ attempts to wreck one of the nation’s most well-respected public university systems. Since early 2023, DeSantis has been turning the place into ChristopherRufoVille, so in many ways, there was always going to be a Kirk statue.

DeSantis’ takeover of the school left it in a shambles. After DeSantis handed the keys to far-right activist Chris Rufo and his ilk, nearly 40% of the faculty resigned. The move also destroyed shared governance, the requirement that faculty play a role in the management of the university. And the college eliminated its gender studies program and then threw hundreds of books into the dumpster. DeSantis primed the pump here for the post-Kirk world, where the right will destroy free speech in the name of free speech.

But surely all this new rigor has improved education, right? Nope. After the DeSantis takeover, its national ranking has fallen by double digits for two years in a row. Gotta break some education eggs to make free-speech omelets, apparently. 

According to the school, the Kirk statue will be “privately funded by community leaders,” which is code for “We are building this regardless of support from the university community and are in no way asking whether they would like a giant statute of Bobby Kenn—er, Charlie Kirk on their campus.” 

It’s a ridiculous move, if less ridiculous than the proposal that Kirk get a statue in the U.S. Capitol.

With all this, New College is the perfect place to honor Kirk: a school that was once renowned for its commitment to free and open expression and exploration, but that has since been transformed into a laughingstock and a puppet of the conservative state.