A federal appeals court just dropped a bombshell ruling that’s got West Texas A&M University in hot water over its attempt to shut down student drag shows.
In a nutshell, the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, with a tight 2-1 vote on Monday, August 18, 2025, declared the university’s ban on student-organized charity drag performances unconstitutional, handing a win to free speech advocates and the student group Spectrum WT.
Let’s rewind to 2023, when this saga kicked off at West Texas A&M, a public institution within the Texas A&M University System, with no religious affiliation to hide behind.
University President Walter Wendler decided to play morality police, canceling drag events like “A Fool’s Drag Race” organized by Spectrum WT, an LGBTQ student group, citing his belief that such shows are inherently harmful.
“A Harmless Drag Show? No Such Thing,” Wendler wrote in a 2023 email, doubling down with a firm stance against hosting such events on campus.
Well, Mr. Wendler, it seems the Constitution disagrees—banning expressive performances isn’t just a policy misstep, it’s a direct jab at the First Amendment, and the court wasn’t buying the excuse of protecting sensibilities over rights.
By 2024, Wendler was at it again, axing another drag performance, this time leaning on a new Texas law targeting “sexually oriented performances” as his justification.
Yet, as the 5th Circuit pointed out, led by Judge Leslie H. Southwick, these theatrical displays “plainly involve expressive conduct” protected under the First Amendment—hard to argue with that legal clarity.
Sorry, but citing vague cultural discomfort or cherry-picked laws doesn’t pass muster when stacked against constitutional protections, especially at a public university that’s supposed to foster open dialogue, not stifle it.
Enter the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE), which stepped in to sue Wendler and the university on behalf of Spectrum WT back in 2023, challenging the ban as a clear overreach.
Though a district court initially sided with the university, denying a preliminary injunction, and even the Supreme Court declined to jump in with emergency action in 2024, the tide turned with this latest appeals court ruling.
Adam Steinbaugh, a FIRE attorney, didn’t hold back, stating they’re “overjoyed” their clients can now express themselves, while promising to keep a close eye on whether Wendler respects the law moving forward—a polite but pointed warning.
This ruling isn’t just a standalone win—it echoes another victory earlier in 2025 for a different student-led LGBTQ group challenging a similar drag ban across the entire Texas A&M University System’s 11 campuses.
Despite the system’s board of regents nearly unanimously voting in February 2025 to declare drag events inconsistent with their mission and values, citing an executive order on recognizing only two sexes, the courts are pushing back hard against such blanket restrictions.
While some might cheer Wendler’s intent to uphold traditional norms, it’s tough to ignore that public institutions aren’t private clubs—they’re bound by the First Amendment, and this ruling reminds us that personal objections can’t trump legal rights, no matter how sincerely held.