Texas State University professor’s firing after Israeli-Palestinian comments blocked
By Jessica Priest, The Texas Tribune
March 25, 2026
A federal judge on Monday blocked Texas State University from firing a professor who says the school punished him for an off-campus talk about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
U.S. District Judge Alan Albright ordered Texas State officials to maintain Idris Robinson’s employment contract, pay and university affiliation for one year or until the case is resolved, whichever is sooner, according to a news release from the Texas State Employees Union. A written order had not been issued as of Tuesday morning.
Jayme Blaschke, Texas State’s director of university communications and public relations, said school officials will decide next steps after reviewing Albright’s written order.
Robinson, a tenure-track philosophy professor, sued the university in March, alleging officials violated his First Amendment rights by punishing him for a talk he gave during an anarchist book fair in North Carolina.
His lawsuit is at least the second recent lawsuit accusing the university of firing a professor over speech made outside the classroom.
Robinson gave a talk titled “Strategic Lessons from the Palestinian Resistance” in June 2024 at the Another Carolina Anarchist Book Fair in Asheville. The event was recorded, and a scuffle broke out afterward, which local police investigated but did not link to Robinson, according to the lawsuit.
Nearly a year later, on June 5, 2025, a pro-Israel activist posted video from the talk on Instagram, accusing Robinson of inciting violence and calling on the university to fire him, the lawsuit says. The post drew about 1,500 likes and 220 comments. The next day, the university placed Robinson on paid administrative leave and barred him from communicating with students and colleagues, the lawsuit says. In July 2025, the university notified him that his contract would not be renewed and that his employment would end on May 31, 2026, without providing a reason. Robinson appealed the decision through the university’s grievance process, but officials upheld it.
Robinson joined Texas State in 2022 as a tenure-track professor and had received consistently positive performance reviews. In 2024, he was rated “excellent,” and the talk was not mentioned, according to the lawsuit.
The lawsuit argues Texas State violated Robinson’s First Amendment rights by retaliating for speech made as a private citizen, not as part of his job duties.
Monday’s ruling does not resolve those claims, but allows Robinson to remain employed while the case proceeds.
The lawsuit follows another recent free speech case involving a Texas State professor.
Last fall, university leaders fired tenured history professor Thomas Alter after online activists amplified remarks he made at a socialist conference and called for his firing. His lawsuit in Hays County district court is ongoing.
The Texas State Employees Union issued a statement saying the court’s “willingness to intervene at this early stage sends a powerful message” to other universities. Union officials said the ruling could have implications for other free speech disputes involving Texas public universities, including Alter’s.
The Texas Tribune partners with Open Campus on higher education coverage.
This article first appeared on The Texas Tribune.
