A lawsuit recently filed in federal court argues that one of the new education laws in Texas is unconstitutional. Senate Bill 12 has sections on D-E-I, social transitioning, and parental rights in K-12 public schools. As Texas Public Radio reports, the lawsuit was filed by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Texas, along with a group of LGBTQ+ and student rights organizations. The suit was filed in federal court on Thursday, August 28, just days before the law went into effect on September 1, 2025.
The group’s attorney Brian Klosterboer says four provisions in the law discriminate based on viewpoint and censor free speech, including a section banning student clubs that discuss gender identity and sexual orientation. “These kinds of clubs have provided a safe place for LGBTQ plus students to gather to discuss topics, and they've been protected by the First Amendment for decades.” The ACLU of Texas is asking the court to block the provision, plus a ban on activities that mention race, a prohibition on sharing information on LGBTQ topics, and another barring staff from assisting with social transitioning. The defendants in the lawsuit either did not immediately respond to a request for comment or said they don’t comment on pending litigation. And in a statement posted the ACLU of Texas website it said: “The Plaintiffs also filed a motion for preliminary injunction seeking to block the enforcement of unconstitutional aspects of the law while this case makes its way through the courts.
The Plaintiffs are challenging S.B. 12’s restrictions as unconstitutional in violation of the First and Fourteenth Amendments and as violating the federal Equal Access Act.” But it wasn’t long ago that Texas Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick successfully led the charge to ban Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) policies in higher education across the state in 2023, calling them discriminatory and divisive. In a statement earlier this year in support of SB 12 Patrick concluded, among other things that, “in recent years, Texas parents have grown increasingly frustrated with their public schools’ woke indoctrination of their children’s education.”
