Article claiming Texas declared Pride flags in classrooms illegal is satirical

A claim being shared online that the US state of Texas has declared bringing an LGBTQ pride flag into a school classroom a “crime” originates from a satirical news article.

Posts sharing the claim on X (formerly Twitter) and Facebook—sometimes include a link to a page with a full story and other versions have a screenshot including the headline: “It’s Official: Texas Declares Bringing a Pride Flag to the Classroom a Crime.”

Many of the accounts posting or commenting on it on social media appear to believe it is a genuine policy.

The website it originates from tags the article under ‘satire’. It reports that the bill is titled “The Classroom Sanctity Act”. We can find no evidence that a bill of this name or nature has been tabled or approved by lawmakers in Texas.

The article also quotes Governor of Texas, Greg Abbott as saying at a signing ceremony of the bill: “No child in Texas should ever be exposed to a rainbow unless it’s in a coloring book, a weather forecast, or the Lucky Charms aisle at the grocery store.”

We can also find no evidence that he ever said this, or that such a signing took place.

In 2023 Governor Abbott introduced laws that banned “inappropriate or explicit material in Texas public school libraries and school lessons” and expanded parents’ access to course curriculums.

But these do not specifically mention or include criminalising the rainbow flag, which is a symbol of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) pride.

However, lawmakers in the state of Tennessee have considered a bill that would limit the types of flags that can be displayed in public schools—including the pride flag.

False or misleading claims about political decisions being shared online have the potential to harm trust in politics. We have previously fact checked a number of articles and quotes attributed to prominent people and politicians shared as if they are genuine, which originated from satirical news reports.