Firefighter fired after Charleston shooting Facebook comment

A 23-year firefighter in East Texas, fired after posting a comment on Facebook about the shooting in Charleston, South Carolina, said Monday his post was taken out of context.

Kurtis Cook, the former Mabank, Texas, volunteer firefighter, wrote “He needs to be praised for the good deed he has done,” on a South Carolina newspaper’s Facebook page on an article about Dylann Roof, the self-confessed shooter.

Cook said articles about his comment accused him of praising Roof, but he said he was replying to another comment where the user said they were going to donate a large sum to the victims’ families, KLTV reported.

“Making me look like I’m standing with this comment, like I’m supporting this Dylann guy, and I would never do that. I’m not racist, never been racist,” Cook said.

Cook deleted his Facebook page and the newspaper was unable to find the comment in question.

Contact Kristen DeSilva at 702-477-3895 or kdesilva@reviewjournal.com. Find her on Twitter: @kristendesilva