When it comes to free speech in Fort Worth, Umair Khan has had his share of the spotlight.
As president of the Dallas-Fort Worth group Metroplex Atheists, Khan found himself on center stage when Fort Worth officials denied his organization the use of a downtown banner program to promote an August 2023 event on how to “Keep God Out of Our Public Schools.”
The organization used the banner program in 2019 to promote a different event, hanging bright yellow “In No God We Trust” banners on downtown street lights. The advertising prompted backlash from some residents.
The 2023 decision denying Khan’s group use of the banner program prompted concerns over whether the city violated the First Amendment, with Khan and other members of Metroplex Atheists claiming officials denied their application because they disagreed with the event’s content.
City officials maintained that Metroplex Atheists’ 2022 application to use the banners was “not in compliance” with the program’s policy and the event was “not of a magnitude to qualify” for the program. City Council eventually amended the banner policy to define what constitutes an event and clarify how the program can be used.
Two years later, Fort Worth leaders made another citywide policy change following controversy related to First Amendment rights and free speech on city property. This time, officials decided that the city could not adopt “regulations pertaining to a speaker’s viewpoint or the content of the event” at city-owned facilities such as community centers and library meeting rooms.
Khan believes the new policy favors groups on the opposite side of the political spectrum from Metroplex Atheists, and he wants officials to address what he described as a double standard in their actions.
“There’s a double standard of, ‘This speech is free speech,’ but any views that they don’t want to hear are often labeled as too political,” Khan said. “I think free speech is important, but I think (city officials) should be consistent. That’s always been my concern with the city making these kinds of decisions.”
At the end of September, city officials rolled out an updated policy regulating the types of events residents and private organizations may host at city-owned facilities. The change overturned a previous ban on events with discriminatory content hosted at city-owned facilities.
The policy change, which took effect Oct. 1, came after a summer punctuated by controversy over free speech rights and debate over how far municipal governments can and should go in protecting those rights.
Now, community leaders on both sides of the political aisle are wrestling with the consequences created and opportunities posed by the policy.
When asked to address concerns over a perceived double standard, the city’s communications team responded with a written statement, saying, “At this time, we believe all relevant information has been addressed in our previous statements and interviews.”
“We believe, as a city, it is important that we provide the same rights to all residents,” Assistant City Manager Jesica McEachern told the Report in September. “While it may be difficult for some employees who have certain beliefs, to see a group using a facility, we have to remember that we are here to serve all of our residents, and that includes those that somebody may agree with their beliefs or may disagree with their beliefs.”
Conservative groups applaud city’s effort to protect free speech
The policy change followed backlash over city staff’s decision to approve an April event reservation on “The Dangers of Transgenderism” hosted by Texas Latinos United for Conservative Action, or LUCA, at a city-owned community center. The controversy prompted Mayor Mattie Parker to instruct city staff to “clean up the process” of booking city-owned facilities to prevent similar incidents in the future.
Officials faced increased scrutiny in July when they reinstated an event reservation for a conference celebrating the Tarrant County-based True Texas Project’s 15th anniversary. True Texas Project started as the Northeast Tarrant Tea Party and has been named on the Southern Poverty Law Center’s national list of extremist groups for three consecutive years.
Their conference, hosted at the city-owned Fort Worth Botanic Garden, included sessions on “Multiculturalism and the War On White America,” “The Case For Christian Nationalism” and “Great Replacement Theory.”
Some activists criticized the city for approving the event reservations, saying both events promoted hate speech and posed safety concerns to Fort Worth residents. City officials have maintained that permitting the events was necessary to protect the right to free speech.
True Texas Project President Fran Rhodes told the Report via email that the city’s new policy is “a wise move.”
“When taxpayer money is involved, as long as laws are not broken, and normal decency is respected, then any groups should be able to use city facilities,” Rhodes said.
She noted that it’s “not really important” for True Texas Project to have access to city-owned facilities but added that it’s “a good thing” if backlash over the organization’s event was the impetus for the policy change. True Texas Project doesn’t often attempt to host its events at city-owned facilities, but in the case of the July conference, the organization had a last-minute need and the botanic garden fit that need and its budget, Rhodes said.
True Texas Project leadership immediately contacted the mayor and city manager’s offices after they were informed that garden staff wanted to revoke their event reservation shortly after The Texas Tribune published an article detailing the event’s agenda.
In response, city leadership reinstated the reservation, which Rhodes said was “the right thing to do.”
“Unfortunately, some people don’t like what we do and our devotion to the core values, so they try to find ways to shut us down,” Rhodes said via email. “They call us names, try to get us thrown out of venues, and stage protests. But we don’t back down. We’ve been doing this for 15 years and we’re not going away. … Who knows — maybe with the new city policy, we can celebrate our 20th birthday at the (botanic garden) too!”
Aaron Rocha, media director for Texas Latinos United for Conservative Action, said it’s important for his organization to have access to city-owned facilities, which he said are affordable for their limited budget.
“We wouldn’t have come out and just made noise to make noise. It happened to us. They tried to remove our First Amendment rights,” Rocha said. “We didn’t fight for our rights to feel good. We fought for our rights to have a say and be a part of this country. That’s what this is about.”
Aaron Terr, director of public advocacy for the nonprofit civil liberties organization Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression, said the policy change protects citizens’ right to free speech.
“It upholds a core democratic value, which is that everyone has a right to voice their opinions in an open marketplace of ideas, where people can say what they think and others can respond and say what they think,” Terr said.
Legal experts previously interviewed by the Report said speech that is considered offensive or discriminatory is still protected by the First Amendment.
Rocha said the right to free speech should also extend to Metroplex Atheists, agreeing with Khan’s statement that the city could be showing a double standard. He said the city should work to implement policies that treat groups of different backgrounds and beliefs equally.
“I think (Metroplex Atheists) should be treated exactly the way we are treated,” Rocha said.
Religious leader, political activist question city’s motive, commitment to equality
Metroplex Atheists previously took legal action against the city, filing a July 2023 lawsuit alleging that the decision to deny them use of the downtown banner program infringed upon the group’s freedom of speech, establishment and exercise of religion. The group has since dropped its suit, Khan said.
“We found that because of the judge that we had, who was very conservative, it was going to be a great uphill battle — so we’ve kind of decided to drop the case,” Khan said.
While he understands the importance of free speech, Khan said the new facility rental policy could have greater implications than simply allowing people with differing viewpoints to express themselves on city-owned property.
“That kind of obfuscating the context and the truth of the matter is knowingly, willfully ignoring how dangerous this stuff can be,” Khan said. “That’s always concerning to me because down the road, there’s always consequences that people who are really just trying to live their lives experience.”
He expressed concerns that future events from groups with extreme viewpoints on race, gender and sexuality could continue to pose safety concerns for people of color and LGBTQ residents.
Sheri Allen is a cantor and co-founder of Makom Shelanu, an LGBTQ affirming synagogue in Fort Worth. The First Amendment is important, Allen said, but she is also concerned about safety.
Along with upholding residents’ First Amendment rights, she said there is a need for effective counter-messaging against hate speech and calls on city leaders for support.
“Our leaders have to be the one to use their free speech to stand up and counter hate speech and stand up for the people who are targeted by these extremist groups,” Allen said. “That would be a really important step. That’s what I’m hoping that they will do.”
Amy Ramsey, chief operating officer for the national nonprofit Defense of Democracy, echoed Khan’s concerns, adding that she believes city officials are “walking on eggshells for the wrong people.” Ramsey lives in Fort Worth and was one of the lead organizers for a protest against True Texas Project’s event at the botanic garden.
“It seems to me like (the city is) catering to these conservative organizations and not everybody else,” Ramsey said. “They don’t want to cater to (Metroplex Atheists). They don’t want to protect them and allow them their free speech, but they’re going to allow LUCA to talk about mutilating children? It’s a double standard.”
Ramsey is worried the new policy requiring event holders to include language in their promotional materials specifying that the city does not necessarily endorse their event could have greater implications. The language takes the onus off the city, she said, and releases officials from an obligation to take a stance on anything, regardless of political leaning.
“I think they made the right decision for themselves to protect themselves from lawsuits. That’s what they did,” Ramsey said. “They’re not protecting Fort Worth citizens, all of us. They’re not. This new language does nothing for marginalized communities.”
Leaders brace for continued controversy, ask city to make stance clear
This fall, LUCA intends to continue using city-owned facilities to host its programming, Rocha said. The organization hasn’t scheduled anything concrete yet, but Rocha said he’s aware that whatever events they host could spark controversy.
That’s a possibility Rocha and Rhodes, the True Texas Project leader, welcome. Rhodes said her organization has no plans to host events at city-owned facilities, but she would consider doing so if a city facility met the particular needs of an individual event.
“Our God-given and constitutionally protected right to freedom of speech and assembly means that anyone who wants to peacefully protest an event is welcome to do so,” Rhodes said via email. “It would be nice if people would get their facts straight before they do so and avoid crude language and gestures, but maybe that’s too much to ask.”
Katherine Godby, co-founder and board chair for the interfaith activism group Justice Network of Tarrant County, called for the city to take action, so that vulnerable groups feel protected under the new policies.
“That the city has given these hate-filled groups a platform for hate speech should at least be balanced with some kind of supportive statement that the city values its LGBTQ+ citizens and stands against hate in all its forms,” Godby said via email.
Previous statements from the city have said officials “do not endorse or condone the beliefs, opinions, or viewpoints of groups or individuals who may rent its facilities.” Over the summer, activists repeatedly called on Parker to take a clear stance on LUCA’s and True Texas Project’s events and denounce their content.
Laken Rapier, chief spokesperson for the mayor’s office, told the Report on July 12 that True Texas Project did not invite Parker to its event. If the group had, Parker would not have attended, Rapier said.
After declining an interview request about the policy change, Parker said in a Sept. 24 statement to the Report that she is a “staunch supporter” of the First Amendment who believes it’s “always best to err on the side of constitutional rights.”
“The decision made by city management was driven by a commitment to uphold constitutional rights, and I support their decision,” Parker said. “The safety, security and welcoming nature of our community spaces are always paramount, and I have confidence that city management and the city attorney’s office have carefully balanced these priorities while respecting the First Amendment.”
Cecilia Lenzen is a government accountability reporter for the Fort Worth Report. Contact her at cecilia.lenzen@fortworthreport.org or @bycecilialenzen.
Marissa Greene is a Report for America corps member, covering faith for the Fort Worth Report. Contact her at marissa.greene@fortworthreport.org.
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