Texas Speaker of the House Dade Phelan is being criticized after he received $10,000 in donations from a reportedly pro-LGBTQ teacher group.
The $10,000 donations made by the Texas State Teachers Association (TSTA) to Phelan (R-Beaumont) have raised concerns in some corners, reported Current Revolt. The group has also endorsed programs related to racial justice that propagate purportedly anti-white conspiracy theories.
The teacher union has a racial and social justice section on its website that details its goals:
“TSTA’s Equity, Education, and You project is our racial and social justice initiative. It is designed to address systemic racism and expand opportunities for students from historically disadvantaged communities. Our goal is to empower educators and their students to become change agents with a mission to dismantle patterns of racism and injustice in our schools and in the communities we live.”
The union advocates using “The Race Class Narrative,” which the organization’s website describes as “an empirically tested narrative on race and class that neutralizes the use of dog-whistle racism to win on the issues we care about.”
The site also notes the organization’s support for the Black Lives Matter movement.
Additionally, TSTA recently made a Facebook post celebrating “Trans Day of Visibility,” which fell on the same day as Easter this year.
Phelan’s stance on matters such as the impeachment of Attorney General Ken Paxton, his failure to support school choice, and giving Democrats committee chair positions have made him the target of several Republican organizations and activists.
The March 5 Republican primary election saw numerous Texas state house representatives lose their seats to challengers backed by Gov. Greg Abbott. Phelan was forced into a run-off after he failed to secure over 50% of the vote in his reelection bid. The run-off election will be held on May 28.