History professor Leonard Moore has taught hundreds of students about the Black Panthers, a Black power organization, and Jim Crow laws, legislation passed to enforce racial segregation in southern U.S. states. He is one of the few Black professors who does this at the University of Texas at Austin. He is granted this freedom because he is tenured and doesn’t have to worry about getting fired for teaching “critical race theory.”

In February, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick threatened to prohibit Texas universities and colleges from tenuring future professors as a result of schools teaching critical race theory, an academic framework that says racism affects all aspects of society. 

Moore said UT’s esteemed reputation would take a significant hit if Patrick succeeds with implementing this tenure ban, as this action would deter accomplished, diverse professors from wanting to work at UT and consequently decrease the number of students interested in pursuing degrees here. Though UT has the eighth highest number of tenured faculty members in the U.S., only about 5% are Black.

“Universities across Texas are being taken over by tenured, leftist professors, and it is high time that more oversight is provided,” Patrick said in a statement.

UT President Jay Hartzell said the tenure system is essential to maintaining UT as a top-tier university in his State of the University Address in September.

Kathleen McElroy, a tenured journalism professor, said all professors of color face systemic racism that limits their opportunities for promotion. 

In order to become tenured, professors must have their research published. However, McElroy said that some publications are not publishing work related to racial issues.

“The top journals may not be publishing that type of work, which means you may not have as many publications,” McElroy said. “It’s all about grant money and publications.”

McElroy said only tenured faculty have the freedom to research any topic that intrigues them. Tenure also comes with the promise of job security. 

“If the State of Texas removed tenure as a process, it would have a very hard time finding qualified professors,” McElroy said.