Texas Tech Sued Over Classroom Restrictions on LGBTQ+ and Black History

Texas Tech University System is facing a federal lawsuit over policies that faculty groups say silence discussions about LGBTQ+ identities, race and Black history while limiting professors’ academic freedom.

The lawsuit, filed Wednesday in federal court in El Paso, challenges two directives issued by Texas Tech Chancellor Brandon Creighton that opponents argue restrict classroom instruction and violate constitutional protections. The complaint was brought by the American Association of University Professors (AAUP), the Texas Conference of the AAUP-American Federation of Teachers, Lambda Legal and the NAACP Legal Defense Fund.

The plaintiffs contend the policies have already changed what students can learn across the Texas Tech University System, which includes Texas Tech University, Angelo State University, Midwestern State University and two health sciences centers. Lawsuit Challenges Classroom Restrictions

According to the complaint, Creighton issued a memo in December 2025 warning faculty they could face discipline if they failed to comply with new limits on teaching topics involving race, sex, gender identity and sexual orientation. Professors were also instructed to submit related course materials for review.

A second memo released in April 2026 expanded those restrictions, directing schools to phase out academic programs centered on sexual orientation and gender identity. It also required instructors teaching lower-level undergraduate and core curriculum courses to replace readings or lessons that addressed those subjects, unless certain exceptions applied.

The lawsuit argues those exceptions have been inconsistent and confusing, leaving professors unsure of what material is permitted.

The plaintiffs are asking the court to declare both directives unconstitutional and block Texas Tech from enforcing them or implementing similar policies in the future. Professors Say Policies Have Changed What They Can Teach

The complaint includes several examples of how faculty members say the directives have affected instruction.

One professor at Texas Tech Health Sciences Center in Lubbock alleges medical students were prohibited from participating in or even observing care involving transgender patients, even when patients sought treatment unrelated to gender-affirming care, including conditions such as cancer, migraines and hypertension.

The lawsuit also claims another instructor was told a Holocaust course could lose its place in the university’s core curriculum if it discussed gay and bisexual victims of Nazi persecution.

Faculty members further allege that works including Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates and Plato’s Republic were blocked from classroom use.

At Texas Tech Health Sciences Center El Paso, an instructor says they were instructed not to use the word “disparity” while teaching students about public health issues, despite discussing documented differences in health outcomes affecting border communities and Black Texans.

The lawsuit argues these examples demonstrate how the policies interfere with education on real-world medical and historical issues. First Amendment Concerns

The plaintiffs argue the directives violate the First Amendment by allowing university officials to approve viewpoints they support while restricting others.

Lambda Legal attorney Nicholas Hite said the policy permits professors to teach the state’s position “that there are only two sexes” while preventing them from acknowledging transgender and gender-nonconforming people.

“That’s viewpoint discrimination and a First Amendment violation in practice at its most basic,” Hite said.

The lawsuit also argues the policies violate the Fourteenth Amendment because the directives are vague enough that professors cannot determine what speech could subject them to discipline.

In addition, the complaint alleges the restrictions disproportionately affect Black faculty because they specifically target discussions of Black history, racial inequality and efforts to address discrimination. Texas Tech Rejects Allegations

Texas Tech System spokeswoman Erin Wilson disputed the claims made in the lawsuit.

“Our commitment to academic integrity and the First Amendment rights of our students will not be distracted by lawsuits as we continue to deliver rigorous academic programs, relevant coursework and groundbreaking research,” Wilson said in a statement.

Wilson also said instructors are permitted to teach civil rights history and historical events, including Nazi crimes. She added that faculty are not required to remove textbooks or assigned works simply because they include references to sexual orientation or gender identity.

According to Wilson, the university system’s Board of Regents has not altered or rejected any courses at Texas Tech’s health sciences centers. Creighton Says Policies Follow State Law

Creighton, a former Republican state senator, became Texas Tech System chancellor in late 2025 after leading the Texas Senate Higher Education Committee.

While serving in the Legislature, he authored Senate Bill 37, which expanded the authority of governor-appointed university regents over curriculum decisions at public colleges.

His December memo described the Texas Tech review process as the first step toward implementing that law.

Creighton has defended the directives as necessary to comply with state and federal requirements while ensuring students receive what he called “degrees of value.”

In a December interview with The Chronicle of Higher Education cited in the lawsuit, Creighton said Texas Tech strives to keep its “door…open to every walk of life.” He also argued the classroom guidance promotes “diversity of viewpoint” and described the policies as a “continuum of common sense.”

As the case moves forward, the lawsuit could become another closely watched legal challenge over how public universities navigate classroom instruction on race, gender identity and LGBTQ+ issues amid shifting political and legislative priorities in Texas.

Source