Houston (AP) – Texas state bars are NAACP’S The president cited new rules on topics that Barr could be considered political after civil rights groups challenged the dismantling of the Trump administration’s education sector.
NAACP President and CEO Derrick Johnson was scheduled to speak at the state bar’s annual meeting in San Antonio in June. He said Wednesday he was shocked that his invitation he spoke to was stolen.
“They decided to condemn freedom of speech regarding the concept of being political when they are not political,” Johnson told The Associated Press. “This is a Texas state bar. These are lawyers who are vowed to support the U.S. Constitution, and we do not violate the very principles they have pledged to support our actions.
Johnson was going to talk June Holiday means the day in 1865 that the last enslaved people in the United States learned they were free.
There is no problem Litigation The NAACP and other civil rights and education groups submitted to President Donald Trump’s executive order in March. Dismantling the education department. The lawsuit argues that the administration’s cuts are hindering mandatory functions such as protecting students from discrimination and funding educational programs.
State Bar Executive Director Trey Apffel said his organization revoked the invitation to speak after violating state bar rules that demanded that the NAACP lawsuit be politically neutral. He said Burr was unaware of the lawsuit until he learned about it in the press.
The law is mandatory in law, including a November 2023 decision by the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to limit information that can be communicated to issues relating to law practice.
Attorneys regulating Texas legal professions are mandated by the Texas Supreme Court, which has administrative control over the group, to avoid being “aware that it is political or even ideological,” Apffel said.
Barr said the NAACP case is “political because he takes over the federal government on the president’s executive order,” Apffel said.
Johnson said he disagreed with Apffel’s view on the lawsuit.
“It’s a case of questioning whether a president has constitutional authority to take certain actions. It’s not political. That’s the job of lawyers. That’s the job of the NAACP,” Johnson said.
In a call with Apffel and other state bar leaders in February, Johnson said he agreed, being asked not to make his speech political in any way.
In a letter sent to Apffel and Barr earlier Wednesday, Johnson said there was a “obvious contradiction” in the group’s decision to withdraw his invitation, but there was a “obvious contradiction” to allow Attorney General William Barr to speak at the 2023 annual meeting.
The bar was criticized by several members for inviting Barr to speak, citing his actions during the first Trump administration, including approval from federal prosecutors across the United States. Pursuing allegations of voting irregularity The 2020 presidential election was recognized despite the lack of evidence of widespread fraud.
Apffel said when Barr spoke in 2023 he was a former office holder.
in The written column Before Barr’s appearance, former president of Barr in the state, Laura Gibson, defended the decision to speak Barr.
“It’s easy to defend the rights of speakers we agree to, but defending the rights of speakers we disagree with is essential to the rule of law,” Gibson said. “In these polarized times, we seem to be at risk of losing it. As lawyers, we should be on the forefront of protecting unpopular or controversial speeches.”
Apffel said Barr would not have been allowed to speak today, as bars about what they say has more stringent restrictions in place.
“I have great respect for Derrick Johnson and his position as president of the NAACP,” Apffel said. “And I have great respect for the NAACP and what they do and what they do.”
He said Johnson’s alternative, former Texas Supreme Court Chief Justice Wallace B. Jefferson, is black and will talk about the importance of June.
“We’re at the intersection of democracy,” Johnson said. “Do we intend to support the Constitution and ensure that this speech is something we cherish, or take a different approach?”
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