Jan. 6 (UPI) -- The Texas American Federation of Teachers union on Tuesday accused state officials of violating teachers' constitutional rights by investigating them for comments made after Charlie Kirk's assassination.
The union represents about 66,000 Texas public school teachers and others and says the Texas Education Agency and its commissioner, Mark Morath, are seeking information regarding potentially disparaging comments made by teachers after Kirk was shot and killed at an outdoor Turning Point USA event at Utah Valley University in Orem, Utah, on Sept. 10.
Morath sent a TEA letter to Texas school superintendents on Sept. 12 in which he said some Texas public school teachers posted "reprehensible and inappropriate content on social media" without providing specific examples, the union says in the 25-page lawsuit filed on Tuesday in the U.S. District Court for Western Texas in Austin.
Morath wants superintendents to report teachers who made disparaging comments about Kirk following his slaying and received 350 complaints, 95 of which are still under investigation.
Related
