Wednesday, October 8, 2025
Monday, October 6, 2025
Thursday, October 2, 2025
Saturday, September 20, 2025
Tuesday, September 16, 2025
Moriarty from Midland forwards a message received from his union.
Moriarty,
This has been an incredibly disturbing week, between political violence in Utah and yet another school shooting in Colorado. Amid these national events, our union has been weathering a storm closer to home.
- On Tuesday, a Texas A&M University professor was fired after viral video clips - spread widely by state Rep. Brian Harrison - showed a student confronting her over (relevant) course content related to gender identity.
- On Wednesday, a Texas State University professor was fired after comments he made at an outside conference, in his personal capacity, were circulated by extremist outlets and influencers.
- And today, a Goose Creek CISD teacher has been doxxed by state Rep. Briscoe Cain for comments she made on her personal Facebook page on her personal time.
These are not isolated incidents, and they will not be the last. Already, Cain, Harrison, and others have begun doxxing teachers and faculty members in Texas and across the nation for using their rights to free expression to say things those elected officials do not agree with.
Let me be clear: This behavior is abhorrent. And our union will fight for and defend members caught up in this state-sponsored witch hunt with every resource we have. We have your back in defending your rights to due process, freedom of expression, and academic freedom.
That said, these are frightening and uncertain times. And we are up against a well-funded, well-resourced, and ill-intentioned outrage machine. Folks, the governor tweeted that the Texas A&M professor should be fired - without an investigation, without a chance for the faculty member to comment, and without any legal merit.
I don't say all of this to scare you. And I don't say it to make you think we'll shy away from a righteous fight. I say it to encourage you to act with caution. We are in a volatile environment, with elected officials seizing this moment to juice up their fundraising and reelection campaigns.
We will have further updates in coming days. At this time, however, I recommend the following to every pre-K-12 and higher education employee:
- Lock down your social media accounts: This weekend, I urge you to look at all of your online accounts. Set them to private. Limit your networks to people you know. Remove your school district and occupational information from your social media profiles.
- Think twice before posting: You are an American. You have a right to free speech. But for public employees, case history on this issue is more treacherous. And it seems clear that we have a political environment where courts and politicians may exploit murky legal waters.
- Call your union at the first sign of trouble: If you are a member of a local union - pre-K-12 or higher education - contact them first. If you are a member in our Associate Membership Program or otherwise an at-large member without a local union, contact Texas AFT.
I don't like sending this message any more than you like receiving it. But it is my duty, as well as Secretary-Treasurer Longoria's, to provide sound guidance and strong defense to our members. Thank you for what you do, and as always, I am proud to stand alongside you.
In solidarity,
Zeph Capo
President, Texas AFT
Charlie Kirk’s Watch List Made Some Professors’ Lives a ‘Living Hell’ [ chronicle.com ]
The flava:
For Tobin Miller Shearer, a professor of history at the University of Montana who had received death threats after being placed on a Turning Point USA target list, news of Charlie Kirk’s murder on a college campus in Utah prompted a flood of emotions. “I cried for our nation, for what this will mean for his family, for all the harm he did in his life, for all of us,” he said. “It was a horrible moment in all of its complexity.”
After those threats, Shearer moved his class on the history of white supremacy to a secret location, with a campus police officer on guard. “I did not want any threats on my life to ripple out and affect my students,” said Shearer, who heads Montana’s program in African American studies.
Shearer was one of hundreds of professors whose lives had unexpectedly intersected with Kirk’s when their names ended up on Turning Point USA’s Professor Watchlist.
Kirk created the watch list in 2016 as a signature product of his new nonprofit. Its mission, it says, is to “expose and document college professors who discriminate against conservative students and advance leftist propaganda in the classroom.” It’s based on published news stories about “radical” behavior by professors, but also informed by recordings leaked by students and tips from the public.
The publicly searchable database has grown to more than 300 professors, who are grouped into categories including diversity, equity, and inclusion, climate alarmist, feminism, abortion, terror supporter, racial ideology, and LGBTQ.
The Chronicle spoke to more than a dozen professors who, like Shearer, ended up on a list that exposed many of them to doxxing and threats. As the examples below show, Kirk’s death conjured up mixed emotions ranging from empathy for his family to contempt for his ideas. It also elicited frustration over how the country is mourning his death. . . .
The article:
Monday, September 15, 2025
Sunday, September 14, 2025
Day Trips: The University of Texas McDonald Observatory, Fort Davis [ austinchronicle.com ]
The flava:
The University of Texas McDonald Observatory high on Mt. Locke in the Davis Mountains is an internationally recognized center for astronomical research. It also invites the public to experience the wonders of looking into space.
To get to the observatory from Fort Davis, take Spur 118 north. The winding 15.5-mile two-lane highway is one of the most scenic roads in Texas. Near the summit of Mt. Locke at 6,791 feet it becomes the highest paved road in Texas.
The article:
Friday, September 12, 2025
UC Berkeley shares 160 names of students, staff with Trump administration in ‘McCarthy era’ move [ Berkeleyside ]
The flava:
UC Berkeley has provided 160 names of students, staff and faculty to the federal government, which has been conducting a probe into alleged antisemitism on college campuses nationwide.
UC Berkeley provided the personal information of these students and staff at the direction of the University of California’s Office of the President, according to The Daily Californian, UC Berkeley’s student paper. Affected students received an email on Sept. 4 notifying them that their names had been released.
An anonymous graduate student told the newspaper that the names targeted seem to be Muslim and Arab individuals who expressed support for Palestine.
Among those accused of “potential connection to reports of alleged antisemitism” is noted feminist theorist Judith Butler, who has previously said that their Jewish upbringing drove her to speak out against the state of Israel through Jewish Voice for Peace.
Butler told the San Francisco Chronicle that UC’s compliance has “echoes of McCarthyism.” . . .
The article:
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