First Amendment Lawsuit

Houston ISD officials removed conservative activist Bonnie Wallace from a March 19 public meeting after she began reading an explicit passage from Sarah J. Maas’ A Court of Silver Flames. Wallace says the book was available at at least three HISD high schools. She is now suing the district, Board President Ric Campo and Board Vice President Angela Lemond Flowers in federal court.

The lawsuit alleges HISD violated Wallace’s First Amendment rights by silencing her viewpoint and removing her from the meeting. Those claims remain allegations and have not been decided by a court.

Anthony Holm examines the conflict between the school library shelf and the public microphone. He also discusses Abdul El-Sayed’s victory in Michigan’s Democratic U.S. Senate primary, Gov. Greg Abbott’s $25 million effort to improve Republican performance in Harris County and his own prediction that Ryan Patrick may eventually seek the lieutenant governor’s office. No Ryan Patrick campaign has been announced.

The episode closes with the McKinney City Council’s 7-0 approval of a site plan for the McKinney Islamic Association. City staff said the plan complied with existing development requirements and did not require a zoning change.