“If They Cheer Violence Publicly, What Are They Whispering in the Classroom?”
Following the tragic assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk, the Texas Education Agency (TEA) has received more than 350 complaints about public school teachers and staff who made remarks celebrating or justifying the violence. In other words: likely hundreds of educators paid with Texas tax dollars have publicly applauded political murder.
The Public Face of a Private Betrayal
The Scale of the Problem
Not all complaints necessarily lead to formal investigations, and some may be duplicates—but even if a fraction are found credible, the scale is alarming.
This is a profound breach of public trust, and raises urgent questions:
- If these teachers will celebrate political violence in public, what might they be saying to children behind closed doors?
- Why are Texans forced to pay salaries to government employees who view assassination as acceptable or laudable political speech?
- Can we trust these educators to treat students fairly—especially those who share or sympathize with the views of Charlie Kirk or other conservative principles?
Some school districts have already acted:
- Jourdanton ISD terminated a teacher over a social media post seen as celebrating Kirk’s death.
- In Klein ISD, at least one teacher was fired over remarks about Kirk considered “senseless and completely unacceptable.”
- In Ector County ISD, a part-time tutor was set to be fired and another employee placed on leave for statements about the killing.
- In Midland ISD, a teacher was placed on administrative leave pending investigation after comments made in a classroom were deemed by the district to violate professional standards.
At the state level, Commissioner Mike Morath has committed to referring teacher misconduct cases to the state board, potentially recommending suspension or revocation of educator certifications for those who cross a line from tasteless commentary into incitement or celebration of violence.
What These Comments Tell Us—and What They Might Hide
1. The Public Margin Gives Glimpse of Private Bias
If a teacher is bold enough to publicly post, “Glad he got what was coming” or “He deserved it,” what is that same teacher saying behind closed doors when no one is looking? These are not simply detached political opinions; they reflect a moral and ideological posture.
What if conservatives or Christian students approach such a teacher for help, mentorship, or classroom Q&A? Will they receive fair treatment—or hostility? Will grades, recommendations, or classroom assignments subtly penalize them? A worldview that celebrates political violence is not likely to foster neutral, respectful dialogue with dissenting students.
2. Tax Dollars Fueling Political Radicalism
Every teacher under contract is paid with public funds: state, local, and federal tax revenues. We expect those funds to support education, not leftist partisan hostility. We did not vote to subsidize teachers who publicly cheer political assassinations.
If the state is going to ask taxpayers to foot the bill, it must demand accountability. Celebrating violence should disqualify someone from the public trust that education demands.
3. The Credibility Gap for Conservative Students
Imagine a conservative student—whether religious, pro-life, or otherwise aligned with Kirk’s worldview—walking into such a classroom. How safe would that student feel to speak? To ask difficult questions? To hold dissenting beliefs?
Students should never feel like second-class citizens in the places they are meant to learn. When educators publicly side with violence, they implicitly signal that dissenters are not welcome. That undermines the very idea of open inquiry and equal treatment in public education.
What Texans Must Demand—and What Must Be Done
A. Full Transparency & Disclosure
The TEA and local districts must publish sanitized (but meaningful) summaries of how many formal investigations result in disciplinary action. Texans deserve to know how many teachers were cleared, reprimanded, suspended, or decertified.
B. Zero Tolerance Policies on Incitement or Celebration of Violence
Every school district must adopt and strictly enforce policies making it clear: celebrating political violence is grounds for dismissal, up to revocation of teaching contract and certification. It cannot merely be “in poor taste”—it must be disqualifying.
C. Whistleblower Protections & Reporting Channels
Students, parents, and colleagues who witness intimidation, bias, or political coercion by educators must have safe, anonymous means to file complaints without fear of retaliation.
D. Legislative Oversight & Consequences
State lawmakers should open hearings, demand accountability, and reserve the power to withhold state education funding from districts that fail to act. If public money supports public schools, it must come with public standards.
We Are at a Moral Tipping Point
When the public learns that potentially hundreds of taxpayer-funded teachers have publicly celebrated an assassination, the question is not just about social media. The deeper question is: what are these teachers doing every day in the classroom, out of view?
We cannot entrust our children to public school systems that tolerate—or reward—political violence, or support of political violence, from their own staff. It is not enough to wait and see which cases lead to discipline. We need systemic reforms, transparency, and cultural recalibration.
If a teacher’s first impulse in response to a cold-blooded murder is to cheer, they have already forfeited the moral ground to be educators. Texans deserve nothing less than educators who respect life, civil discourse, and the dignity of all students—even those whose views they personally oppose.
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