A University of Kansas instructor was placed on leave Wednesday after he was recorded on video saying that men refusing to support a woman for president because they’re not smart enough should be lined up and shot.
In a video that went viral on social media Wednesday morning, the instructor remarked on why men might not be inclined to vote for a female candidate for president such as Vice President Kamala Harris.
“That’s what frustrates me,” said the instructor, identified as Phillip Lowcock.
“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,” Lowcock said.
“Did I say that? Scratch that from the recording. I don’t want the deans hearing that I said that.”
Seriously @UnivOfKansas? You’re letting this be said in your classrooms? That men who won’t vote for Kamala Harris for President should be lined up and shot?? @RogerMarshallMD @JerryMoran pic.twitter.com/7hHihxScEg
— Ned Ryun (@nedryun) October 9, 2024
A spokesperson for the university said the school was aware of the video in which an instructor made an “inappropriate reference to violence.”
She said Lowcock was placed on administrative leave, pending further investigation.
“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,” spokesperson Erinn Barcomb-Peterson.”
“The university has an established process for situations like this and will follow that process,” she said.
Lowcock was the director of international student-athlete support who works in the university’s Health Sport and Exercise Sciences Department.
Gov. Laura Kelly praised the university’s swift approach to addressing the issue.
“While healthy political discourse is paramount to our democratic society, violent rhetoric is never acceptable,” Kelly said in a statement.
“We must strive to make our classrooms a place where diverse viewpoints are respectfully discussed, and politics is not weaponized to make our students feel unsafe or demonized for having differing opinions,” she said.
U.S. Sen. Roger Marshall called for the instructor’s immediate dismissal.
“The University of Kansas must fire this professor immediately,” Marshall said in a statement.
“Anyone who says that people who don’t vote for Kamala Harris should be ‘lined up and shot’ are completely deranged and shouldn’t be around students nor in academia,” he said.
“This promotion of political violence should be met with quick action by KU.”
The Foundation of Individual Rights and Expression – known as FIRE – defended the instructor on social media.
“We must cool down the political rhetoric and be respectful and civil to each other & and that is especially true for someone charged with teaching our young people.”
Blake Flanders, president of the Kansas Board of Regents, issued a statement responding to the professor’s statements.
“The board believes every American citizen has the right to vote how they see fit without fear of retribution or violence,” Flanders said.
“All of us, especially those in positions of authority, have a responsibility to respect and uphold that right. The Regents firmly oppose the use of violent rhetoric in our political discourse,” he said.
Senate President Ty Masterson added, “I think it’s becoming clear which party is the real threat to democracy.
“The reason so many people are opposing Harris is not because she’s a woman, but because she’s a poor leader with a track record of bad ideas,” Masterson said.
This is not the first time a University of Kansas professor has gotten into trouble over political remarks made publicly.
Back in 2013, KU placed journalism professor David Guth on indefinite leave after he sent a message on social media blaming the Navy Yard shooting in Washington, D.C., on the National Rifle Association. The shooting left 13 dead, including the gunman.
Guth, a native of Maryland’s Eastern Shore, wrote on Twitter that “the blood is on the hands of the #NRA.”
“Next time, let it be YOUR sons and daughters. Shame on you. May God damn you,” Guth wrote.
The president of the Kansas State Rifle Association called Guth’s tweet “outrageous” and called for the university to fire him.
