An Illinois news anchor resigned from her position on Monday, telling the Daily Caller News Foundation she has “no regrets” after what she called an “attempt to censor” her tearful, on-air Charlie Kirk tribute.
Beni Rae Harmony says she was punished after she told viewers in the “non-partisan tribute” on Friday that it is “okay” for people to grieve Kirk’s death and to “lean on your neighbors, speak up for what you believe in, I don’t care what it is.”
Harmony reported on social media that she was “suspended” by her Springfield, Illinois station WICS, an ABC affiliate, following the tribute.
“When conversations stop happening, when individuals become wordless, that’s when violence begins,” Harmony said in her on-air tribute, quoting Kirk. “So if you do one thing today, make it be with passion, with conviction, stand up for your friends, stand up for your beliefs and speak loudly even if your voice shakes. Your words have meaning, your values have purpose, never forget that.”
“Thank you CK, you changed my life,” Harmony continued.
Harmony said Kirk was her “mentor,” first boss and “first person who made me believe in myself.”
WICS-ABC 20 did not respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment.
“Many in the mainstream media have been fired or punished for mocking his assassination. I believe I am the first to be targeted for honoring him on air,” Harmony said in an X post announcing her resignation. “My resignation is guided by values that are essential to who I am, which I refuse to set aside in order to keep a job. I choose my faith and love of country, and always will.”
“I have no regrets for resigning from WICS following their attempt to censor my tribute to Charlie Kirk,” Harmony told the Daily Caller News Foundation. “While some in the liberal media like MSNBC immediately smeared him, I chose to take a different route and honor him, and WICS suspended me for it.”
“I never told anyone to vote a certain way or subscribe to a certain ideology,” Harmony continued. “I simply said it is okay to feel grief and sadness for a fellow American who was assassinated for engaging in the free exchange of ideas on a college campus. My values are more important than begging for a job with a network that cares more about its left-wing owners than its own humanity. I like to think that Charlie would be proud of me for standing up to them, and that’s all the peace of mind I need.”
Kirk, founder of Turning Point USA, was assassinated during a campus event at Utah Valley University on Wednesday. Several individuals have been fired or suspended for mocking Kirk’s assassination online.
This post has been updated to reflect comments to DCNF from Beni Rae Harmony.
