Everyone Should Be Fired Over Charlie Kirk

This piece is part of Yellow Scene Magazine’s Opinion section. The views expressed here are those of the author in their role as Publisher, and do not represent a reported news position. At Yellow Scene, opinion pieces speak freely, challenge assumptions, and say the quiet parts out loud.

This is our 25th Commemorative Issue, and I had planned to write something about how we started and why we still do investigative journalism and even still print monthly. But such is life; even reaching 25 years doesn’t promise smooth sailing. The world is always changing.

I am very proud to have reached this milestone, and I am also proud of the work we have delivered to Boulder County over the last 25 years. The fact that we’ve helped connect a large part of the growing East County residents to local businesses since our inception makes me feel good about our contributions. Today, Yellow Scene is the last and only locally-owned, independent publication doing authentic journalism for the entire county. We never accept sponsored content, and we never charge people for stories. Restaurants don’t pay to be featured. Our calendar is free. There is no paywall. Our coverage has always been focused on civics, education, health, sports, arts, entertainment, and in general, our lives. Which we have been recognized 209 times for excellence in reporting over the last 25 years. We are, in fact, the Free Press.

For 25 years, Yellow Scene has chosen to report truthfully and honestly. That commitment has earned Yellow Scene a loyal audience, but it has also drawn out a few haters over the years. But I know they don’t reflect the character of this county. I know the heart of our community because I speak with people every day and see the values they uphold at the ballot box. 

Three issues in, I published letters to the editor about a developer’s shady practices. This resulted in phone calls to advertisers claiming we were “violating election law.” It wasn’t true, but the harassment was real. I am forever grateful to the legendary Percy Connaroe, whom I often disagreed with, for coming to our defense.

When 9/11 happened, Yellow Scene was just one-year-old. I had to decide: do we shy away from the hard truths, or report them? We chose truth — documenting why the invasion of Iraq was a bad idea. We received hate mail, angry calls, and threats. The same happened when we supported Proposition 112, when we covered police accountability, and even when we made a joke about “Freedom Fries.” At one point, we were even doxxed by Joseph Camp, deemed Colorado’s notorious “supertroll” by Westword, now in prison in Belize, where laws against doxxing are stricter. 

Now, in our 25th year, we are facing the same pattern again. The same circle who have harassed me and others for over a decade is targeting our advertisers with a smear campaign about me and Yellow Scene. The flashpoint was our coverage of Charlie Kirk and a social media post that said, “Imagine that, half-mast for a Nazi.” Whether you think it was right or wrong, the point stands. We did not lower flags for the Evergreen students terrified by gun violence that same day, or for Officer Brian Sicknick, who died after January 6th, or for Minnesota House Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband, who were murdered in a politically motivated attack. The Trump administration didn’t even lower them for Jimmy Carter. But they were lowered for a billionaire-backed podcaster whose legacy is being whitewashed, and those speaking out are being vilified. 

The gun violence that killed Charlie Kirk is a stain on America. Nowhere else in the world experiences gun violence the way we do. And while Kirk should not have died from it, that does not erase the words he used in life. Kirk defended the idea of America as a “Christian nation” rooted in white European heritage, pushing narratives that non-white immigrants are “diluting” the country. He dismissed systemic racism as “a lie,” attacked Black Lives Matter as a “terrorist organization,” and mocked Black women leaders as unqualified “DEI hires.” He called LGBTQ acceptance a “contagion,” smeared schools as “grooming” children, and compared gender-affirming care to “child abuse.” He suggested political enemies should be punished or even executed publicly. He insisted the 2020 election was “stolen” and encouraged January 6th attendees to “fight for Trump.” He was a staunch defender of gun rights and said: “I think it’s worth it. I think it’s worth to have a cost of, unfortunately, some gun deaths every single year so that we can have the Second Amendment to protect our other God-given rights.”

I do not recall any of Jesus’ teachings calling for a white-ethno state. 

None of these comments warrants justifying violence. But if his words are protected under free speech, why are critics punished for pointing them out? This week, Jimmy Kimmel was fired for comments, joining a growing list of journalists, teachers, and others who have been punished for speaking out. Free speech protects Kirk’s words, but those who highlight his violent rhetoric are canceled. The irony isn’t lost: the same people who have screamed about “cancel culture” for a decade are now running their own cancel campaign — a national tactic now showing up in Boulder County.

The folks gunning for Yellow Scene are not new. They’ve called our advertisers before, left vicious online reviews, and harassed us and our neighbors over Pride, Black Lives Matter, and oil and gas regulation. Our former Black mayor was harassed endlessly; at his job, at his children’s school, even in his own yard. They are doxxing neighbors who speak up, and now they’ve packaged their bullying into a slick “boycott packet” designed to scare local businesses. They claim to represent “thousands,” but it’s the same small group of Erie names recycling the same old tactics. This isn’t about Charlie Kirk. It’s about silencing truth.

America is on the very slippery side of the slope toward authoritarianism. The POTUS is using the military against citizens; he is illegally snatching people off the street and imprisoning them without due process; and he is targeting dissent by criminalizing protest and arresting people simply for speaking out. We are facing a moral dilemma as a nation. Yellow Scene is clear on where we stand: with democracy, truth, and our community.

Through all of this, Yellow Scene continues to do what we have always done: connect our communities, and that includes our local businesses. 

If you value local journalism in your backyard, I encourage you to support our advertisers, tell them you shop with them, and consider becoming a sustaining supporter of Yellow Scene. We honestly can’t afford to lose advertisers, and thankfully, many are finding these threats offensive. They are not making a list of which businesses to boycott; they are making a list of which ones to support. 

We may be facing one of the darkest times in our history, but I believe connecting with our community is absolutely critical to everyone’s survival. Shop Local. Support our advertisers. Support local journalism. Support democracy.

Support the local press that’s been telling the truth for 25 years. Become a sustaining member and get our monthly print edition at home. We’ve weathered 9/11, floods, fires, economic crashes—and some deeply chaotic years. With your support, we’ll keep going. Because democracy still depends on journalism.