Teachers in Texas face criticism for remarking about the assassination of Charlie Kirk
In the aftermath of the tragic shooting of Charlie Kirk, founder of Turning Point USA, at Utah Valley University, several educators in Texas have found themselves in hot water for their comments on social media.
The Texas Education Agency (TEA) is currently reviewing more than 280 complaints against public school teachers and staff who posted comments about Kirk's assassination. This includes a social studies teacher in the Klein Independent School District, who was dismissed for calling Kirk 'racist, homophobic, a misogynist, transphobic nasty person'. Another teacher in Goose Creek Consolidated ISD is facing termination for suggesting that Kirk's death was the 'consequences of his actions'.
The American Federation of Teachers (AFT) has spoken out against these disciplinary measures, criticising the TEA's interventions. Zeph Capo, president of the Texas chapter of the AFT, labelled the TEA's inquiries as a weaponisation of state authority against educators.
Education Commissioner Mike Morath has warned that educators who posted inappropriate content about Kirk on social media could face suspension or revocation of their teaching certificates. This warning has been heeded by several teachers, with an elementary teacher and a band director at Wylie Independent School District both resigning after making comments about Kirk on social media.
The fallout from the Kirk incident has prompted legislative action at the Texas Capitol. New House and Senate committees focused on civil discourse and freedom of speech in higher education have been established.
The TEA hasn't opened any formal investigations yet; they are currently reviewing complaints to determine if any posts violate the Educators' Code of Ethics. Meanwhile, authorities have labelled the killing of Kirk as a 'political assassination'.
Elsewhere, a student at Texas Tech University in Lubbock was arrested for celebrating Kirk's death, and a video of her doing so went viral. Gov. Greg Abbott shared the video on social media.
In a separate incident, Sarah Rollwitz was fired from the Bilingual Education Institute in Houston for Instagram posts criticising the public response to Kirk's assassination. An employee in Midland Independent School District was placed on administrative leave over comments regarding the assassination of Kirk.
This story was contributed to by Houston Public Media, KTTZ Lubbock, and The Texas Newsroom.
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