On Sept. 10, American right-wing political rising star Charlie Kirk was fatally shot during a campus speech in Utah, sparking national outrage and prompting conservative communities across the country to organize memorial events. However, in Michigan, employees of the office supply company Office Depot were fired for refusing to print posters for a vigil in memory of Kirk.
According to American media reports, the Kalamazoo County Republican Party placed an order with Office Depot for a batch of posters to be used at a vigil held on Sept. 12 at Bronson Park in downtown Kalamazoo. Nearly three hours after placing the order, the organizers received a call from the store supervisor, Beryl. The response on the other end of the line shocked them: the order could not be fulfilled because the poster content was deemed "political propaganda."
Matthew DePerno, a Republican lawyer and long-time conservative activist, immediately went to the store upon hearing the news to confront the employees in person. Inside the store, he recorded a video: he approached several employees at the counter and sternly questioned why a memorial photo was considered "political propaganda." A female employee in the video responded on the spot, "We don't print political propaganda." When another person filming pressed further, asking, "What exactly made you think it was political propaganda?" the employee hesitated and replied, "Because he is a political figure..." before trailing off.
The incident caused an uproar online. Office Depot apologized for the matter and stated that the employees involved had been fired. In a statement on the X platform, the company said, "Our employee's actions were completely unacceptable, lacked compassion, violated company policy, and did not align with the values Office Depot upholds. We extend our sincere apologies to the affected customers and the community."
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