4 January 15 - 21, 2026 dallasobserver.com DALLAS OBSERVER Classified | MusiC | dish | Culture | unfair Park | Contents Teacher Trouble Texas educators sue over Charlie Kirk investigations. BY EMMA RUBY M onths after the Texas Education Agency received hundreds of com- plaints against educators accused of posting inappropriate content following the assassination of conservative commentator Charlie Kirk, a state teachers’ union is suing to stop the agency from launching investiga- tions into the posts. As first reported by The Texas Tribune, the Texas American Federation of Teachers filed a lawsuit on Jan. 6 that seeks to bar Ed- ucation Commissioner Mike Morath and the agency from looking into the posts and requests that the agency better cement First Amendment protections for educators in its policies. The lawsuit claims Morath was re- sponsible for “unleashing a wave of retalia- tion and disciplinary actions against teachers” after announcing in September that the TEA would evaluate posts made by educators to determine whether “sanction- able conduct has occurred.” “A few well-placed Texas politicians and bureaucrats think it is good for their careers to trample on educators’ free speech rights. They decided scoring a few cheap points was worth the unfair disci- pline, the doxxing, and the death threats targeted at Texas teachers. Meanwhile, educators and their families are afraid that they’ll lose everything: their livelihoods, their reputations, and their very purpose for being, which is to impart critical think- ing,” said Texas AFT President Zeph Capo in a statement. The lawsuit includes details on four edu- cators from the Houston and San Antonio areas who faced disciplinary action or were fired for posts about Kirk’s death. “We are happy that the Texas AFT is being very protective of members when it comes to their constitutional rights,” Alli- ance-AFT President Rena Honea said in a statement provided to the Observer. “.... We look forward to the outcome because of the action that the TEA and the com- missioner have taken with this event. We’ll be watching it like [everyone] to see how the courts rule.” The TEA received more than 350 com- plaints spanning 124 school districts. At the time, the Observer reported that 22 dis- tricts in North Texas employed at least one educator who was the subject of a com- plaint. Four of those districts — Allen, Keller, Mesquite and Richardson — told us they were not aware of any active investiga- tions into their employees being underway. As of Jan. 5, the agency told the Tribune that 95 investigations across the state re- mained active. AFT’s lawsuit claims that the investigations launched by Morath resulted in inconsistent disciplinary action across school districts and did not align with the agency’s prior enforcement of social media policies or expectations. “The TEA appears to mandate investiga- tions only for school personnel voicing criti- cism of the Commissioner’s preferred political figure,” the lawsuit says, adding that educators were not barred from dis- cussing the shooting deaths of Minnesota lawmakers Melissa Hortman or John Hoff- man last June. Some districts did not wait for TEA in- vestigations into the Kirk comments to start. Grand Prairie ISD told the Observer in Octo- ber that two employees had been placed on leave for emails related to Kirk’s death, but that the educators were reinstated after an internal investigation found the messages “reflected poor judgment” but did not “ap- pear to be an incitement of violence.” “A report was submitted in compliance with the (TEA) commissioner’s directive re- garding mandatory reporting and was not intended as a recommendation for certifica- tion sanction. We have had no further com- munication on this matter from the state,” a statement from the district said. KERA also reported that at least one “longtime educator” with Dallas ISD had been suspended without pay for comment- ing on Kirk’s death, but the district declined to comment, citing an inability to speak about personnel matters. Texas AFT and the organization’s local chapter could not be immediately reached for comment. The Texas Education Agency declined to comment, citing outstanding le- gal matters. ▼ RELIGION EPIC MEADOW CONTROVERSIAL PLANO MOSQUE MOVES AHEAD WITH ABBOTT- OPPOSED DEVELOPMENT. BY KELLY DEARMORE T he East Plano Islamic Center (EPIC) will move forward with its plans for a controversial residential develop- ment in Collin and Hunt Counties. Instead of being named EPIC City, however, Capital Community Partners says the proposed community will now be named “The Meadow.” Announced in 2024, plans for the 400- acre development were halted last year af- ter Texas Gov. Greg Abbott began leading a charge against what he called the “sharia city.” Over the course of most of 2025, Ab- bott, along with Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton launched a number of investi- gations against EPIC while using their so- cial media reach to regularly speak out against the mosque’s work, including fu- neral services. “The group behind the proposed East Plano Islamic Center compound may be misleading investors,” Abbott said in a March 2025 press re- lease. “Defrauding Texans will not be tol- erated. The Texas State Securities Board is conducting a thor- ough investigation to ensure Texans are pro- tected from financial harm that is alleged to have been caused by EPIC. This is part of an ongoing investigation into allegations of ille- gal activities by EPIC. All entities in Texas must follow state law, not Sharia law.” In 2026, though, EPIC is looking to set the record straight as it moves ahead with its community plans. “Over the past year, The Meadow and af- filiated entities have been subjected to an extraordinary number of investigations and public claims, many of which have been framed as evidence of wrongdoing despite repeated findings to the contrary,” read a statement from Community Capital Part- ners, EPIC’s corporate entity for buying and selling land. “Multiple state and federal agencies have completed reviews examining distinct and unrelated issues, including housing, civil rights, and securities matters. Repeatedly, those reviews found no evi- dence of illegal intent or securities viola- tions.” | UNFAIR PARK | Joe Raedle/Getty Images >> p6 Mike Brooks The East Plano Islamic Center has been controversial in Texas. A Texas teachers’ union is suing to stop investigations into teachers’ social media posts about Charlie Kirk.
