A Barrington High School social studies teacher, identified online as Benjamin Fillo, posted a video after the assassination of Charlie Kirk in which he called Kirk “a piece of garbage” and appeared to show no remorse for the killing. That shocking bit of conduct — celebrating the death of a public figure while serving as a taxpayer-funded educator — rightly set off alarms in the community and across social media. The video quickly spread and forced the district to respond amid rising national interest.
School officials put the teacher on paid administrative leave and opened an investigation as calls for accountability mounted, while civil liberties groups warned about suppressing speech even as they condemned political violence. The ACLU has expressed concern about chilling free speech, but most parents and residents see a clear line: educators do not get a pass to cheer when someone is killed. Communities deserve both robust free expression and the basic decency that comes with public service; celebrating violence crosses the line.
Rather than cower, students at Barrington High answered the moment with courage and common sense — two freshmen, Caleb Kaplan and Brayden Ryan, are spearheading a Turning Point USA chapter to offer a conservative voice and a safe space for students who feel marginalized. Young Americans are tired of being shouted down and humiliated in their own classrooms, and they’re organizing to protect free thought and religious liberty on campus. Their initiative shows exactly how civic engagement should work: grassroots, principled, and unapologetically in defense of American values.
The district’s response to a concerned parent requesting the teacher’s curriculum only made matters worse when Barrington Public Schools quoted an astonishing $117,132 fee to produce those public records. That looks less like bureaucracy and more like a deliberate attempt to bury transparency from taxpayers who fund these classrooms. When a school district charges six figures to show what’s being taught, parents must smell something rotten and demand immediate reform.
Let’s be clear: conservatives do not defend the celebration of political violence — any decent person should condemn it — but neither should leftist teachers get to weaponize the classroom with partisan hatred and then hide behind union protection. Educators carry special responsibilities; when they violate the trust of families and the norms of civil society, there must be consequences. The NEA-aligned culture that excuses this kind of behavior is undermining respect for public schools and pushing earnest families toward alternatives.
Turning Point USA’s involvement and the students’ determination to form a recognized chapter is a hopeful counterpunch to the cancel-culture atmosphere too many schools tolerate. Young leaders organizing for free speech, parental rights, and conservative values are precisely the kind of civic actors American schools should encourage rather than suppress. Parents and taxpayers should back these students, pressure school boards for transparency, and insist that public education serve all citizens fairly.
This episode is a wake-up call: protect free expression, but hold public servants to higher standards, demand access to curriculum without extortionate fees, and support students who stand up for their beliefs. Hardworking Americans must rally behind accountability and common decency in our schools so future generations learn patriotism, not partisanship masquerading as pedagogy. The Barrington kids took action when adults hesitated — that alone deserves our respect and our support.
