An Ohio State University administrator has set off a controversy — and is facing calls for her dismissal — after calling for compassion for Abdul Razak Ali Artan. On Monday, Artan drove into a group of pedestrians outside a classroom building, got out of his car and stabbed several people with a butcher knife before he was shot and killed. Officials have said he may have been inspired by terrorist groups.
Stephanie Clemons Thompson, assistant director of residence life, posted a message to Facebook (restricted to those to whom she was connected and asking that it not be shared) reacting to the way some have been posting images of Artan’s dead body and celebrating his death.
Her post was shared and quickly spread to people who were offended by it, many of whom have shared it widely, calling for her to be fired. Thompson has deleted the post, gone silent on social media and not responded to press requests for interviews.
More than 1,100 people have signed an online petition demanding Thompson’s dismissal.
