One of Texas’ largest teachers unions is suing the state education agency, saying it crossed a constitutional line by investigating teachers over social media posts about the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk. According to the Texas American Federation of Teachers, Education Commissioner Mike Morath didn’t just condemn bad taste—he effectively invited districts across the state to play Thought Police with educators’ personal Facebook and Twitter accounts.
After Kirk was killed last year, Morath urged school leaders to report any “reprehensible and inappropriate” posts about his death. That led to more than 350 complaints statewide, many of which the Texas Education Agency has since dismissed. Still, nearly 100 cases remain under investigation, even though the agency admits it hasn’t actually disciplined anyone yet. Think of it as a very intense vibe check, backed by the full power of the state.
The union argues that teachers were punished or threatened for speech that had nothing to do with their classrooms and didn’t disrupt school operations. Some were fired, some investigated, some just quietly watched their employment files get a little uglier. The lawsuit also points out that the state didn’t issue similar crackdowns when teachers posted about assassinated Democratic lawmakers—suggesting this sudden concern for “professionalism” may be…selective.
Meanwhile, Morath and Gov. Greg Abbott insist they’re only targeting posts that incite violence, not comments made in poor taste. Yet districts across Texas have already suspended or fired employees anyway, while other educators have simply nuked their social media accounts out of fear. Nothing says “robust marketplace of ideas” quite like mass self-censorship.
Legal experts say the First Amendment tends to frown on punishing public employees for private speech unless it actually disrupts their work. But in Texas, the bar for disruption appears to be “someone important didn’t like what you said.”
So welcome to Texas, where free speech is sacred—right up until it makes the wrong people uncomfortable.
https://www.texastribune.org/2026/01/06/texas-education-agency-charlie-kirk-investigations-lawsuit/