On Tuesday, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton announced that his office would launch undercover operations targeting what he called “various groups affiliated with left-wing political violence” in Texas. In a press release, Paxton cited “transgenderism” and “antifa” as driving forces behind the supposed threat. The move comes just weeks after the Trump administration signaled its intent to weaponize the FBI against left-leaning NGOs and advocacy organizations by labeling them potential supporters of terrorism. Now, that same playbook appears to be spreading through the Republican Party — with one of the nation’s most aggressively anti-LGBTQ+ officials leading the charge.
“In response to the political assassination of national hero Charlie Kirk and the disturbing rise of leftist violence across the country, Attorney General Ken Paxton has launched undercover investigations into various groups affiliated with left-wing political violence known to be operating in Texas,” the memo reads, “Leftist political terrorism is a clear and present danger. Corrupted ideologies like transgenderism and Antifa are a cancer on our culture and have unleashed their deranged and drugged-up foot soldiers on the American people… To that end, I have directed my office to continue its efforts to identify, investigate, and infiltrate these leftist terror cells. To those demented souls who seek to kill, steal, and destroy our country, know this: you cannot hide, you cannot escape, and justice is coming.”
Paxton goes on to say that his office has been instructed to “initiate sweeping investigations into radical leftist organizations engaged in or providing support to those performing political violence.”
This is far from the first time Paxton has used the power of his office to go after LGBTQ+ people. The attorney general has repeatedly turned to extreme measures to sanction or intimidate anyone who operates outside a cisgender, heterosexual framework. In July, he targeted adult recreational swim leagues for allowing transgender participants — even though no law bans the practice. In March, he declared that court orders granting transgender people corrected gender markers on driver’s licenses were “void” and tried to compile a list of those who sought such changes. And perhaps most notoriously, in 2022, he spearheaded an effort to investigate the parents of transgender youth for child abuse, prompting several families to flee Texas altogether.
The move echoes a broader push by the Trump administration to weaponize counterterrorism tools against left-leaning organizations and antifascist groups. In the aftermath of Charlie Kirk’s shooting, J.D. Vance and Stephen Miller announced new crackdowns on progressive nonprofits they claimed were spreading “messaging designed to trigger and incite violence.” They singled out the Ford Foundation and the Open Society Foundations — neither of which had any connection to the incident — after an article criticized Kirk, who was killed last month, for his history of hate speech and transphobia. “We are going to go after the NGO network that foments, facilitates, and engages in violence,” Vance said while interviewing Miller. By day’s end, Trump had signed an executive order designating “antifa” a terrorist organization. Meanwhile, the far-right organization, the Heritage foundation, published a memo aimed at getting the White House to declare support of transgender people as a form of domestic terrorism.
The use of undercover agents against civil rights groups and anti-fascist activists has a long and troubling history in the United States. In the 1950s and ’60s, the FBI’s COINTELPRO operation spied on civil rights leaders like Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X. Similar tactics were later deployed against Vietnam War protesters and the early gay rights movement in the ’60s and ’70s. After 9/11, federal surveillance shifted toward Muslim communities and mosques. Now, those same authoritarian tools are resurfacing — this time in Texas, where Paxton is seeking to infiltrate antifascist and transgender communities under the guise of public safety.
Civil rights leaders, organizations, and individuals in Texas can practice steps to keep themselves a little safer from domestic surveillance and targeting. Such individuals and organizations should practice digital hygiene, use password managers, two factor authentication, keep apps upgraded, and use tools like Signal for messaging which are end-to-end encrypted. Such individuals should avoid discussing acts that may be seen as unlawful, such as civil disobedience, in open channels and should be trained to spot provocation patterns. Readers can learn more about how to protect themselves by referencing the Electronic Frontier Foundation’s Surveillance Self-Defense toolkit.
This piece was republished with permission from Erin In The Morning.
Before you go — An urgent appeal for your support
Truthout relies on individual donations to publish independent journalism, free from political and corporate influence. In fact, we’re almost entirely funded by readers like you.
Unfortunately, donations are down. At a moment when our journalism is most necessary, we are struggling to meet our operational costs due to worsening political censorship.
Truthout may end this month in the red without additional help, so we’ve launched a fundraiser. We have 10 days to hit our $50,000 goal. Please make a tax-deductible gift to Truthout at this critical time!