Texas teachers’ union sues state education agency over investigations into social media posts about Charlie Kirk

A Texas teachers’ union has sued the state’s education department, accusing it of retaliating against public school employees for their social media posts following the assassination of conservative political activist Charlie Kirk.According to the lawsuit, filed Tuesday in a US District Court in Austin, the Texas Education Agency and its commissioner, Mike Morath, violated the free speech rights of teachers and other school staff by directing school districts to track what the agency described as “vile content” posted online after Kirk was fatally shot in September.

The lawsuit was filed by the Texas American Federation of Teachers, which represents about 66,000 educators and school employees across the state, AP reports.

What triggered the lawsuit

After Kirk’s killing, Morath sent a letter to school superintendents on September 12 stating that certain social media posts could violate the Texas educators’ code of ethics. He wrote that “each instance will be thoroughly investigated,” according to the Associated Press.The union argues that the letter effectively set off a broad and vague enforcement campaign that targeted educators for speech made outside their official duties and away from the classroom.The lawsuit states that the Texas Education Agency received more than 350 complaints about individual educators. As of Tuesday, the agency confirmed that 95 investigations remain open, the Associated Press reported.

Allegations of selective enforcement

Zeph Capo, president of the Texas American Federation of Teachers, said the agency’s actions amount to selective enforcement.Speaking at a news conference in Austin, Capo said the state had not issued similar directives following other acts of violence or mass shootings. “It was in fact a witch hunt,” he said, according to the Associated Press.The lawsuit argues that the agency is policing speech that offends state leaders rather than enforcing a neutral standard.The Texas Education Agency said it could not comment on ongoing legal matters.

Teachers under investigation

The lawsuit cites four unnamed teachers, one in the Houston area and three in the San Antonio area, who were investigated over posts that criticized Kirk or commented on reactions to his death.According to the filing, the Houston-area teacher was fired, while the three San Antonio-area teachers remain under investigation. The teachers were not named due to safety concerns, Capo said, as reported by the Associated Press.The lawsuit states that none of the posts celebrated or promoted violence.

Legal questions around free speech

The US Supreme Court has ruled that government agencies may limit public employees’ speech if it relates to their official duties or disrupts the workplace. Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers, said neither standard applies in this case.“We’re talking about schoolteachers when they were not in classrooms, on their own social media, commenting on a matter that everyone in the country and the world saw,” Weingarten said at the news conference, according to the Associated Press.The lawsuit contends that Morath’s directive is too broad to be enforced without chilling protected speech.

Political backdrop

The legal challenge comes weeks after Texas Governor Greg Abbott and Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick announced a partnership with Turning Point USA, the right-wing group founded by Kirk, to establish chapters in Texas high schools.The governor’s office and Turning Point USA did not respond to requests for comment, the Associated Press reported. Neither is named as a defendant in the lawsuit.Charlie Kirk founded Turning Point USA in 2012 and built it into a national conservative organization focused on youth outreach. He was killed while appearing at a university event in Utah.The case now places the role of state education authorities in regulating educators’ off-duty speech under judicial scrutiny, with implications that could extend beyond Texas.