Gov. Greg Abbott railed against Hebron High School in a Saturday night post on X. The Republican harnessed the ongoing Lewisville ISD controversy for more momentum in his never-ending quest for school vouchers.
“No parent should be forced by the state to send their child to this school. I'm fighting for the right of parents to send their children elsewhere,” Abbott wrote. “Parents deserve school choice in Texas. The candidates I am backing will deliver that school choice.”
Some context: Libs of TikTok, a popular right-wing social media handle, posted video last Wednesday showing a North Texas teacher in a pink dress, hat and boots. The X account stated that the educator sometimes works in “full drag,” and the clip quickly went viral.
Lewisville ISD confirmed to the Observer on Friday that the teacher had been placed on administrative leave. Reached for comment on Monday, a district spokesperson said that there hasn’t been a change in his employment status. (She did not respond to a question about Abbott’s post.)
The staff member at the center of the ordeal, Rachmad Tjachyadi, is now making national and international headlines. The Daily Mail in the U.K. dubbed him a “cross-dressing teacher,” as did The New York Post.
And at least one other Texas leader is joining Abbott in calling out Hebron High. State Rep. Nate Schatzline, a Fort Worth Republican, shared the governor’s post on X, along with the caption: “Well said @GovAbbott [flexed biceps emoji].”
But while GOP politicians are using the viral moment as more ammo for school vouchers, Democrats are blasting the right for taking aim at a constituent.
“Gov. Abbott is only participating in this online fodder to appeal to a right wing base and promote his failed school voucher scam,” Texas Democratic Party Chairman Gilberto Hinojosa told the Observer in an emailed statement. “Abbott has a long history of attacking public school teachers, and his reckless attempt to accredit this rogue social media account only shows how far he is willing to go when pushing a dangerous MAGA agenda.”
“Gov. Abbott is only participating in this online fodder to appeal to a right wing base and promote his failed school voucher scam.” – Chair Gilberto Hinojosa, Texas Democratic Party
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Kardal Coleman, chair of the Dallas County Democratic Party, accused the governor of concentrating on the “wrong things” at the expense of Texas students.
“He’s wasting his time fighting a GOP-invented culture war against self-expression and trying to shore up support for his wildly unpopular voucher scam, when there are very real problems in our public schools that he should be working to fix instead,” Coleman continued. “Texas is facing a massive teacher shortage, and yet the governor has rebuffed all efforts by lawmakers to increase teacher pay or provide any other help for public schools with our state’s record-breaking budget surplus.”
Abbott’s pet issue of school voucher legislation suffered repeated bipartisan defeats during multiple special sessions last year. Still, he’s refused to drop the fixation, and critics accuse him of holding teacher raises hostage.
In the days ahead of next month’s primaries, Abbott has campaigned against members of his own party who refuse to fall in line with the school-voucher conga.
The Saturday X post in question did rile up some constituents, however. One social media user (who describes himself as being “in ministry,” no less) menacingly replied: “Got an urge to clean my guns... Weird??”
Got an urge to clean my guns...
— Noble_Stranger (@CHURCHof_X) February 18, 2024
Weird??
It seems that many conservatives, though, don’t actually give a damn. Just 2% of potential GOP primary voters cited vouchers, education savings accounts or school choice as a key factor in their upcoming House primary vote, according to a UT/Texas Politics Project poll published Monday.
Meanwhile, a wave of Tjachyadi support has washed over the region, with students demanding his return in a Change.org petition launched last week. More than 13,525 signatories have backed the effort as of Monday afternoon.
Students had urged the teacher to wear the dress, according to the petition.
The Collin County Democrats told the Observer in an emailed statement that Tjachyadi had donned the outfit on Valentine’s Day, which was a “spirit day.” The party further promoted inclusivity and diversity and condemned the “political attack” on Tjachyadi, who’d worked to provide “safe spaces” for kids.
Some petitioners described the beleaguered teacher as among the best instructors they’ve ever had.
“We view the politicization of this innocent gesture and dress as a troubling manifestation of toxic behavior by Gov. Greg Abbott and the Texas Republican Party as a whole,” the Collin County Democratic Party continued. “This incident represents yet another attack, not only on LGBTQIA+ Texans but on all teachers as well, and we vehemently condemn this divisive approach.”
