What did Barrington High School teacher say? Video of student confronting teacher over allegedly celebrating Charlie Kirk's death goes viral

A teacher from Barrington High School, Rhode Island, faced online backlash for allegedly sharing insensitive remarks about Charlie Kirk on TikTok. The faculty member, identified as Benjamin Fillo, was later put on administrative leave, as the school district announced an investigation into the matter, ABC 6 (WLNE-TV) confirmed on Tuesday, September 16. 

During a recent meeting, the Barrington School Committee spoke about the matter, Steve Ahlquist, journalist, reported. During the discussion, three students of Barrington High School took the podium to address the teacher’s comments and criticized him, while asking for his firing. One of them later posted the video on TikTok, publicly condemning Fillo’s remarks. 

For those unaware, the Barrington High School teacher allegedly posted a short clip on TikTok in the aftermath of Charlie Kirk’s assassination. Many accused Benjamin Fillo of seemingly celebrating the Turning Point CEO’s death, as he was heard saying: 

“I have about as much sympathy for Charlie Kirk right now as I do for all those farmers across the country who want socialist handouts from the government right now.” 

The teacher further criticized Kirk for his beliefs: 

“This is a man who hated the LGBTQ community, who hated women’s rights, who hated democracy, who thought that he was a big man because he went to college campuses and debated young college students, and thought he proved how tough he was with his words that he studied ahead of time.

BREAKING: Benjamin Fillo, a teacher at @bps_ri has been placed on administrative leave after reportedly posting this disgusting video celebrating and mocking Charlie’s m*rder

FIRE HIM pic.twitter.com/MQcY1KBhNF

— Libs of TikTok (@libsoftiktok) September 12, 2025

Fillo called Charlie Kirk “a piece of garbage,” and supposedly justified his killing by saying: 

“This is what happens.” 

The Barrington High School teacher concluded his short clip with a remark on gun control: 

“I’m curious if we’re going to want to take guns away now from who will inevitably be the white man who shot and killed him. Bye, Charlie.”

A student expressed not feeling “comfortable or safe” with the Barrington High School teacher accused of celebrating Charlie Kirk’s assassination

Students call out their teacher during a school board meeting for supporting the violence against Charlie Kirk.

Barrington, Rhode Island teacher Benjamin Fillo allegedly posted a TikTok, celebrating Kirk's death. He is now under investigation by the school district.

"As a… pic.twitter.com/e4u1S3I3DF

— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) September 16, 2025

Steve Ahlquist reported on a recent Barrington School Committee meeting about Benjamin Fillo’s case. The journalist revealed that about 40 people took that podium expressing their views on the matter. Later, a TikTok video also went viral, depicting three students sharing their criticism of the teacher. 

The clip, originally posted by @jacari.toshifty on TikTok, was shared on X by Collin Rugg. In the viral video, the original poster, Jacari, took the podium with two of his schoolmates. The trio, one by one, presented their perspective. One of them condemned the murder of Charlie Kirk: 

“No matter what anybody says to me, I will never stand for violence, especially if a man was publicly murdered right in front of his wife, one of his children, thousands of students, and other bystanders.”

He continued: 

“Charlie was not a racist. He did not hurt anyone sexually. And he did not kill anyone. Therefore, this was an unjustified cause of death that should never be celebrated.”

The student further asserted that Charlie’s family did not deserve to lose him, and he did not deserve to die due to a difference in opinion. He added:

“But this teacher deserves to lose his job.”

After Jacari concluded, his fellow schoolmate also condemned the violence by remarking:

“As civilians and people of a great country, we hold ourselves to a higher standard than to support or worse one yet rejoice in violence. Someone who advocated for an arrested murderer and assassinator of one of the greatest debaters and free speakers of our time should have no place in the classroom, more so around young children.”

The third student expressed his concern for the safety around the Barrington High School teacher: 

“I do not feel comfortable or safe with one of our teachers supporting violence. We believe this world needs god because something as cruel as this should never be celebrated. God bless Charlie Kirk and rest in peace, Mr Kirk.”

The trio’s comments were met with claps from some within the room. Their demand for the teacher's firing was not an unpopular opinion, as nearly 23 out of 40 people favored termination of Fillo, per Steve Ahlquist.