Oregon teacher, city councilor faces backlash for celebrating Charlie Kirk’s death

PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — Cornelius City Councilor John Colgan is under criticism for a post he made about Charlie Kirk’s death on Facebook.

“Hearing that Charlie Kirk got shot and died really brightened up my day,” Colgan said in the post. “Nobody deserves it, but some are asking for it.”

Colgan is also a science teacher at Neil Armstrong Middle School in Forest Grove, according to the school’s website.

He was elected to the Cornelius City Council in January 2023. He served previously from January 2019 to December 2022.

As first reported by WIRED, right-wing activists and influencers nationwide have been sharing identifying information of anyone they view as celebrating the death of conservative activist Charlie Kirk. Kirk was shot and killed while speaking at a Utah university on Wednesday.

In an email, a spokesperson for the Forest Grove School District said they had been made aware of inflammatory comments shared by Colgan on his private social media account while off duty.

“The District does not condone violence nor the celebration of violence,” the statement said. “Our top priority is to protect the right of students to a safe and welcoming learning environment, and our policies prohibit the sharing or teaching of personal political views in our school classrooms.”

John Colgan did not immediately respond to an email request for comment.