Texas curriculum change will portray Islam as 'radical' and 'brutal'

Texas curriculum change will portray Islam as 'radical' and 'brutal' The Texas State Board of Education greenlit a new social studies curriculum on Friday that will teach high school students about how Islam is "radical" and "brutal".

The move followed several hours of testimony by hundreds of people before the Republican-dominated board made its 8-4 decision about how to amend the way religions are taught across public schools in the state.

The new curriculum will affect some five million students.

Starting in the 2030-2031 school year, when the textbooks are phased in, the focus will shift to making Bible passages required reading, highlighting Christianity's positive attributes, and referring to early Islam's military campaigns as "brutal" despite not using the same term to describe wars waged by Christians.

Teaching early Islam will be specifically framed through a lens of slavery and female captivity, the Fox4 Dallas-Fort Worth news channel reported.

The attacks of 11 September 2001, carried out by Saudi hijackers and largely planned by al-Qaeda, will be taught as motivated by "radical Islam" rather than political causes or agendas. Critics slammed the decision.

Read more: Texas curriculum change will portray Islam as 'radical' and 'brutal' Students hold a protest against Customs and Immigration Enforcement policies outside their school on 6 February 2026 in Austin, Texas (Brandon Bell/Getty Images via AFP)