Tipsheet

Here's What Happened to KU Professor Who Called for Men Not Voting for Harris to Be 'Lined Up' and 'Shot'

Rebecca Downs
Rebecca Downs  |  October 12, 2024 11:45 AM

This week, video footage resurfaced in which an instructor identified as Phil Lowcock, while teaching a lecture at the University of Kansas (KU) earlier this semester, called for men who wouldn't vote for Vice President Kamala Harris to be "lined up" and "shot." The university not long after noted in a statement that Lowcock was placed on leave. On Friday, Sen. Roger Marshall (R-KS), who has been following and speaking out against the instructor's comments, shared that Lowcock is no longer a professor at the university.

As the senator also made clear, Lowcock was indeed "declaring open season" on men over their voter preferences with his remarks.

"(If you think) guys are smarter than girls, you've got some serious problems," Lowcock had said, per video footage. "That's what frustrates me. There are going to be some males in our society that will refuse to vote for a potential female president because they don't think females are smart enough to be president. We could line all those guys up and shoot them. They clearly don't understand the way the world works." 

He then went on to wonder, "did I say that? Scratch that from the recording. I don't want the deans hearing that I said that."

Marshall had called for firing the professor earlier this week in a statement. "A professor calling for the shooting of people who do not vote for Kamala Harris is beyond the pale. As we’ve seen with two assassination attempts against President Trump, some people are insane enough to follow through on these sick fantasies. The professor’s statements are simple to condemn, and his employment easy to sever," he had said. 

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The senator had also issued several posts over X.

The university also penned a letter about the incident from Provost & Executive Vice Chancellor Barbara A. Bichelmeyer, as shared by the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE) over X.

In addition to writing that the professor "has left the university," Bichelmeyer noted that they "are working to identify a new instructor to assume responsibility for his classes, and we are working with the students impacted by this change."

There's also some sort of explanation mentioned by Lowcock. "The instructor has apologized to me and other university leaders. He has explained to us that his intent was to emphasize his advocacy for women's rights and equality, and he recognizes he did a very poor job of doing so," the letter continues. 

While the letter notes that "violent rhetoric is never acceptable," the letter also discusses "free expression," with a call to action for all as well.

"It's no secret that higher education and, more broadly, our society continue to grapple with issues of free speech, care and respect for others, and civic engagement. The world is what we make of it. Please use this unfortunate event as an opportunity to reflect on these topics and the role each off us plays in our academic community," Bichelmeyer concluded. 

Such a letter comes after the university has also tried to make excuses for Lowcock in a statement earlier this week. 

"The instructor offers his sincerest apologies and deeply regrets the situation. His intent was to emphasize his advocacy for women's rights and equality, and he recognizes he did a very poor job of doing so," the university's statement read in part. 

Statewide media also mostly referred to Lowcock's comments as "inappropriate reference to violence." 101.3 KFDI went with a headline on how "KU professor under fire for classroom comments." The Kansas City Star even published an opinion piece further downplaying the professor's inexcusable remarks, "KU professor’s 'shoot them' rant was terrible. But spare me the MAGA pearl-clutching." The author, Joel Mathis, is described as a "regular opinion correspondent" for the site. 

Lowcock's comments and his exit from the university have been a trending topic over X. 

Political violence has no place in this country, something the left claims they agree with, and threats of it are also not likely to help Harris win over struggling demographics.