A confrontation between Fort Worth police officers and a Christian street preacher at a Trinity Pride Fest event has sparked criticism after a video circulated online showing officers warning that speech deemed offensive could result in a citation, as reported [1] by Red State.
The exchange, which took place in Fort Worth, Texas, involved a Christian street preacher and a retired federal law enforcement officer speaking at the event.
Videos shared on social media captured two Fort Worth police officers discussing whether speech that offended others could lead to enforcement action.
One of the videos was posted by Blue Lives Matter, which criticized the officers’ handling of the encounter despite identifying itself as a pro-law enforcement organization.
In a statement accompanying the video, Blue Lives Matter wrote:
“On behalf of the largest police news outlet in the world, we’re officially calling for the resignation or termination of this officer IMMEDIATELY.
A female Fort Worth police officer was caught on camera threatening to ticket a retired federal law enforcement officer and a Christian street preacher for ‘offensive speech.’
The officer told the man that if someone is offended by his preaching, then ‘we have a problem’ and said she would issue him a ticket. When he asked if she was really going to ticket him for offensive speech, she replied, ‘Yes, I am.’
This is a blatant violation of the First Amendment. Police officers do not have the authority to ticket people for speech that offends others. That is the exact opposite of how freedom of speech works in America.
The fact that this officer targeted a retired federal law enforcement officer who was simply preaching makes this even more unacceptable.
Departments that employ officers who openly disregard the Constitution need to clean house. This kind of behavior erodes public trust and makes every good officer’s job harder.
Pass this along so more people see what is happening on our streets.”
Another video showed a separate exchange between a male Fort Worth officer and the preacher. During the discussion, the preacher questioned whether speech that offended him would also be treated as a potential violation.
The preacher asked, “What if I’m offended by what they say? Like, they come up telling me this and that, swearing at me. Will they get cited?”
The officer responded, “Are you offended?”
The preacher replied, “Oh, I’m offended by all of this. I’m offended by seeing half-naked men running around with children. I am deeply offended by that.”
The officer answered, “Unfortunately, there’s not much on our side to do anything [about that].”
Another video posted by Libs of TikTok claimed:
“IT GETS WORSE”
Fort Worth police officer says that calling a biological male a ‘sir’ is a ‘grey area’ and that he would potentially ticket @wfcpreacher for ‘offending’ a man pretending to be a woman.
The cop then says he WOULD NOT ticket the LGBTQ activists for offending the preacher by marching around half-naked men in front of children.
‘Unfortunately, there’s not much on our side to do anything about it.’
Following the public attention surrounding the incident, the Fort Worth Police Department indicated additional instruction would be provided to officers.
According to a statement obtained by the Dallas Express, the department said:
“The City of Fort Worth and the Fort Worth Police Department recognize that incidents involving First Amendment activity require thoughtful consideration and understanding of the law.”
The department said it would issue additional training following the incident.
The videos continued circulating online as the exchange fueled broader discussion about First Amendment protections and police interactions during public demonstrations.