Gordy Carmon, left, with Equality Texas, Jon Culpepper, center, with Pride Frisco and DR Mann, right, with Radical Faeries Dallas and CinéWilde were among those who attended the LISD board meeting tonight in support of chemistry teacher Mr. T and the district’s LGBTQ students and faculty. (Photos provided by Gordy Carmona)
Former Hebron High School chemistry teacher Rachmad Tjachyadi — known to his students as “Mr. T” — has already notified Lewisville Independent School District officials that he does not intend to return to teaching at Hebron High, even though LISD officials have cleared him of violating the school’s dress code policies by wearing a pink dress to school on “Spirit Day” in February.
But a group of his supporters, including Hebron HS students, attended the LISD Board of Trustees meeting tonight (Monday, March 18), using time designated for public comments to call for accountability from school board members and for an apology from LISD officials to Tjachyadi.
Gordy Carmona, North Texas community engagement and advocacy strategist for Equality Texas, was one of those attending tonight in support of Tjachyadi. They said that representatives of Asian-Pacific Islander/American Public Affairs and Dallas Asian American History joined Equality Texas at the board meeting “in support of Mr. T’s students,” who have called for his reinstatement since he was first suspended. Other organizations with representation at tonight’s meeting included North Texas Asian Democrats, Dallas Radical Faeries and Trans Empowerment Coalition.
Right-wing agitator Kelly Niedert also attended tonight’s meeting as well as the March 4 meeting, bringing with her a group that also may have included local Proud Boy members.
Still, Carmona said, “five out of the six speakers were there in support of Mr. T and his students.”
Republican State Board of Education member Evelyn Brooks also attended, and while she primarily spent her time there with Neidert and her group, “she did go around to others in attendance, asking what they thought could be done about the situation and what a ‘middle ground’ would look like,” Carmona said.
“I am not 100 percent clear on what she meant by ‘middle ground,’ but she was mainly attempting to hear from students and teachers,” they added. “It felt deeply performative.”
Ask how Tjachyadi’s supporters were received at tonight’s meeting, Carmona said that none of the “staff or security at the LISD administration building appeared to have any issues with those who came out. The only negative commentary came from the people around Kelly Neidert.
“I hope that the LISD trustees heard the concerns from the community members there in support of the LGBTQIA+ students at tonight’s board meeting,” they added. “We cannot allow out-of-state hate groups the opportunity to disrupt the education of North Texas students or target faculty members they deem to be distractions simply because they do not fit the limited standards set by outdated social norms.”
Carmona shared the remarks they had prepared to deliver, but said they were not able to say everything he wanted before their allotted time expired. “When you stepped up to the podium the first thing they did was ask for your name and your address, and that was considered part of your time to speak. And that did cut into people’s time,” they said.
Carmona added that they chose not to give their address due to their concerns for their own safety after noticing possible members of the anti-LGBTQ Proud Boys — who are known for attending protests and counter-protest armed with guns — in the audience.
Carmona’s prepared remarks read:
“I am here today to speak to the consequences of LISD actions in response to social media posts from an out-of-state hate group. Not only have you failed your students and lost an exceptional teacher with 22 years of experience at a time when Texas continues to face a teacher shortage, you have empowered out-of-state opposition groups to continue attacking your LGBTQIA+ students and faculty and our community in north Texas.
“We hope that LISD will use this incident as a point of growth for the district and look into their policies and procedures to ensure that they can protect their students and faculty from targeted attacks that aim to discriminate and disrupt the education of students by out-of-state opposition groups.
“To LISD’s students — especially the LGBTQIA+ students — please know that we SEE you, SUPPORT you and CELEBRATE you for exactly who you are. There is NO room for discrimination and censorship within our education system.”
Tjachyadi was suspended from the school in February after LibsOfTikTok, a right-wing social media account, had obtained video of the teacher and posted it online, resulting in Tjachyadi being suspended.
(LibsOfTikTok was created and is operated by a woman named Chaya Raichik, a right-wing pundit and COVID-19 denier who grew up in Los Angeles and now lives in The Bronx, NY. In other words, she is not from Texas, does not live in Texas and has no children attending Texas schools.)
After Tjachyadi was suspended, supporters rallied outside the school board’s March 4 workshop meeting, with plans to speak during the public comment section that earlier meeting. District officials, however, before the meeting notified those who had signed up that they would not be allowed to speak, but only public comments specifically address. When some of those attending began chanting and disrupting the meeting, board members left the room, and the protesters were asked to leave the building, and they did so without further incident.
— Tammye Nash
