University instructor on leave after calling to line up and shoot men who won't vote for female president
'We can line all those guys up and shoot ‘em. They clearly don’t understand the way the world works,' the professor said
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}A University of Kansas instructor has been placed on leave after violent comments he made about men who don't support female presidential candidates went viral on social media.
In a video shared on X, the instructor railed against men who think they are smarter than women, before apparently connecting these thoughts to the presidential race.
[If you think] guys are smarter than girls, you got some serious problems," the instructor appeared to say to a lecture hall full of students at the start of the recording. "It’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."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"We can line all those guys up and shoot them. They clearly don’t understand the way the world works," he continued.
A University of Kansas instructor went viral after he threatened violence against men who don't support female presidential candidates. (Melina Mara/The Washington Post via Getty Images)
He quickly added, "Did I say that? Scratch that from the recording, I don’t want the dean hearing that I said that."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Videos of the violent remarks quickly spread on social media, drawing millions of views on Wednesday.
Sen. Roger Marshall, R-Kan., responded to the clip by calling for the university to fire the instructor.
"Disturbing video from a University of Kansas professor. Anyone saying men who don’t vote for Kamala Harris should be ‘lined up and shot’ is deranged and shouldn’t be around students nor academia. I trust that the University of Kansas will take immediate action and fire this professor," the Republican wrote on X.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}According to the student newspaper, The University Daily Kansan, the man in the video is Phil Lowcock, the director of International Student-Athlete Support at the University of Kansas. He is also an adjunct faculty, health sport and exercise lecturer at the school.
Kansas Sen. Roger Marshall. (Getty Images)
The University of Kansas confirmed the instructor was employed by the school and had been put on administrative leave while an investigation is under way.
"The university is aware of a classroom video in which an instructor made an inappropriate reference to violence," the university said in a statement.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"The instructor is being 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. The university has an established process for situations like this and will follow that process."
The same university has drawn negative attention for offering a history course to students called "Angry White Male Studies."
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The University of Kansas announced one of its instructors was placed on administrative leave after violent comments he made in the classroom went viral on social media. (Izabela Habur/iStock)
"Like it or not, ‘the angry white male’ is a prominent figure in our cultural imagination and, as such, a phenomenon worthy of study. Where does he come from? What's he angry about? Is his anger misplaced? Is he blaming the right people? How long has this been going on? Is he a global phenomenon? And how do we move forward? This course seeks to answer these and other questions by exploring the historical background to white male anger in modern America and how it is manifested in the wider world today," the course description still says on its website.