A federal judge has temporarily halted enforcement of a new Texas law aimed at curbing “disruptive” campus protests, siding with a coalition of student groups who argue the measure violates the First Amendment.
Senate Bill 2972—formally titled the Campus Protection Act—was designed to regulate where and when demonstrations could occur on college campuses across the state. The bill amended earlier 2019 legislation that set boundaries for campus protests, but critics said the new provisions went too far in restricting student expression.
The challenge was brought by several student organizations, including the Christian University Students group at the University of Texas at Dallas, UT Dallas’ The Retrograde newspaper, Young Americans for Liberty, Inc., and other campus-based associations such as the Texas Society of Unconventional Drummers and Strings Attached. The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE) represented the plaintiffs.
Their lawsuit, filed against the University of Texas System Board of Regents and presidents of various state universities, argued that the law’s restrictions were “blatantly unconstitutional” and amounted to “an about-face on [Texas’s] stance toward protecting free expression and upholding the First Amendment.”
On Tuesday, U.S. District Judge David Alan Ezra issued a preliminary injunction blocking enforcement of SB 2972. His order sharply criticized the state for failing to justify its restrictions on speech.
“The First Amendment does not have a bedtime of 10:00 p.m.,” Ezra wrote in his ruling. “The burden is on the government to prove that its actions are narrowly tailored to achieve a compelling governmental interest. It has not done so.”
State Officials Defend Law
Supporters of the law insist that the measure was intended to preserve campus order, not to suppress speech. State Sen. Brandon Creighton (R-Conroe), the bill’s author and current Chancellor of the Texas Tech University System, defended the legislation in a statement to the Austin-American Statesman.
“The ruling represents only a temporary stay by one judge, and I’m confident the law will ultimately be upheld,” Creighton said. “Texas can and will be the model for how universities protect both free expression and campus integrity.”
Context of Rising Campus Tensions
The Campus Protection Act was passed earlier this year amid heightened tensions on college campuses following protests related to the ongoing Israel-Gaza conflict. During debate over the bill, Gov. Greg Abbott posted on social media criticizing demonstrators at UT Austin, labeling the protests “antisemitic.”
Judge Ezra’s order cited those remarks and the bill’s legislative analysis, which referred to “massive disruptions” caused by student protests, as evidence that the law’s intent was content-based—targeting particular viewpoints rather than regulating conduct neutrally.
“As such, the statute is content-based both on its face and by looking to the purpose and justification for the law,” Ezra’s order stated.
Free Speech Advocates Celebrate
Attorneys with FIRE, which has been a leading national advocate for free speech on college campuses, hailed the injunction as a major win.
“This ruling is a victory not only for our plaintiffs, but for all those who express themselves on college campuses across Texas,” said JT Morris, an attorney with FIRE.
“Texas’ law is so overbroad that any public university student chatting in the dorms past 10 p.m. would have been in violation,” added Adam Steinbaugh, another FIRE senior attorney. “We’re thankful that the court stepped in and halted a speech ban that inevitably would’ve been weaponized to censor speech that administrators disagreed with.”
Ongoing Free Speech Debate
The court’s decision comes as free speech debates on college campuses have re-emerged in the national spotlight, particularly in the wake of the assassination of Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk last month. Texas universities have since become flashpoints in the broader cultural and political struggle over what constitutes acceptable speech.
While the injunction represents only a temporary pause, the ruling underscores the continuing tension between maintaining campus order and safeguarding constitutional rights. As the case moves forward, university leaders, lawmakers, and courts will likely continue to wrestle with how far Texas can go in regulating speech without crossing constitutional lines.
