A University of Pennsylvania professor who mocked Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk after his assassination remains employed at the Ivy League school despite widespread outrage and reports that he had stepped down from a senior administrative post.
Michael Mann, a climate scientist and the university’s Vice Provost for Climate Science, Policy, and Action, announced on his personal website last week that he was leaving that position. Mann claimed his decision was voluntary and tied to his “science policy advocacy work.” However, the announcement came just two weeks after he sparked a national backlash for retweeting posts ridiculing Kirk following the conservative activist’s murder at a Utah event.
Although Mann no longer serves as vice provost, he remains a tenured professor at Penn and continues to hold his position as Director of the Penn Center for Science, Sustainability, and the Media — a fact confirmed by the university’s own website. Critics argue that the move amounts to a hollow gesture that shields Mann from real accountability.
“I don’t understand why Penn continues to employ Mann,” said Steve Milloy, Senior Policy Fellow at the Energy and Environment Legal Institute and a former Trump EPA transition team member. “If the school decided he should lose his leadership post, why wasn’t that enough to end his academic appointment as well?”
Mann’s controversy began when he retweeted multiple posts attacking Kirk, including one that mocked New York Times columnist Ezra Klein’s article eulogizing the late activist. One of the retweets referred to Kirk as the “head of Trump’s Hitler Youth.” Mann also shared a post accusing Klein of “whitewashing” Kirk’s legacy and criticized Utah Gov. Spencer Cox for expressing condolences, linking instead to a gun control advocacy group.
After facing intense backlash, Mann deleted the retweets and issued a statement claiming he didn’t notice the “inflammatory language” in the posts. “I was simply agreeing with the criticism of Ezra Klein’s claim that Kirk was ‘practicing politics the right way,’” Mann wrote, adding that he does not “approve of the inappropriate language.”
Still, many say the clarification fell flat. Pennsylvania Sen. Dave McCormick called on Penn to take “immediate and decisive action,” saying Mann’s behavior “crosses a moral line” and reflects “a broader culture of hostility toward conservatives in academia.”
The university has not confirmed whether Mann’s resignation as vice provost was voluntary or prompted by administrative pressure. Penn Provost John Jackson Jr. told the Daily Pennsylvanian that Mann “wasn’t fired or driven out” of his post.
Since the controversy, Mann has remained active on social media, promoting his new book, Science Under Siege, which targets what he calls the “dangerous anti-science movement.” On September 30, he posted photos from Hong Kong, where he accepted an honorary degree from the Education University of Hong Kong, calling it “a pleasure” to celebrate in “this amazing city.”
Mann has a long history of inflammatory political commentary. In 2022, he tweeted that the Republican Party should be “destroyed,” and earlier this year suggested “we’re in Second Amendment territory” if Donald Trump refused to comply with a judge’s ruling.
Despite the growing calls for his termination, UPenn has remained silent — fueling further anger from those who argue the university applies double standards, punishing conservative speech while excusing left-wing hostility, even when it involves the death of a political opponent.
The post UPenn Professor Who Mocked Charlie Kirk’s Death Still Employed Despite Outcry and ‘Resignation’ appeared first on Real News Now.
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