AUSTIN — A dispute over public school curriculum at the Texas State Board of Education has escalated after board member Marisa B. Pérez-Díaz threatened legal action against fellow board members Julie Pickren and Brandon Hall over social media posts criticizing her.
Pérez-Díaz, a Democrat, sent cease-and-desist letters to the two Republican members last week after they described her on social media as a “Marxist,” questioned her views on the United States and criticized her positions on education and social issues.
According to the letters, the statements “caused or may foreseeably cause substantial personal, professional, and reputational harm” and could encourage harassment.
Pérez-Díaz said she would pursue legal action if Pickren and Hall continued what she described as harassment.
Neither board member withdrew the statements. Both characterized Pérez-Díaz’s claims as meritless and said their comments were protected political speech.
Pickren said criticism is part of serving in elected office.
“There’s a cost to serving in state office, and there’s a cost for serving children, unfortunately, now that it has become so polarizing,” Pickren said. “You have to have a thick skin to serve as a Texas elected official.”
Hall said his constituents elected him to oppose what he described as a “Marxist critical theory agenda” and that he intended to continue expressing those views.
The dispute emerged as the Republican-controlled State Board of Education approved revisions to Texas’ kindergarten through eighth-grade social studies curriculum and adopted a required reading list that includes Bible passages for public schools.
The curriculum changes divided board members, with conservative members supporting lessons they said emphasize American history and Christianity, while Democrats, educators and historians argued the materials minimize difficult chapters of U.S. history, overemphasize Christianity and contain factual errors.
During board meetings, Pickren, Hall and other conservative members opposed amendments that sought to expand instruction on topics including race-based slavery and segregation.
Although the approved curriculum includes those historical events, critics argued the lessons devote less attention to them than to other aspects of American history.
Pérez-Díaz, who has served on the board since 2013, sent the cease-and-desist letters on June 23.
In a response, Pickren’s attorney, Briscoe Cain, wrote that Pérez-Díaz was attempting to silence political opponents through legal action.
Pickren said she did not intend to involve attorneys in the dispute but felt compelled to respond.
Hall denied Pérez-Díaz’s allegations of bullying and harassment, saying his criticism focused on disagreements over public education policy.
“We should be professional, and we should be civil,” Hall said. “But my voters also expect me politically to push back.”
Pérez-Díaz said disagreements among board members are common but expressed concern that personal attacks on social media could encourage threats and distract the board from its work.
She said the dispute shifted attention away from issues affecting Texas students and public education.
