top of page

Texas sheriff’s Facebook war on “political correctness” upsets residents


This story was originally published on Salon

Denton County, a small area north of Dallas, is host to a diverse population of old-timers and college students. It’s also home to local sheriff Tracy Murphree, who’s been making headlines thanks to a history of controversial Facebook posts. Following the May terrorist attack at an Ariana Grande concert in Manchester, for example, he called for an end to “political correctness” and warned against an enemy with an ideology “hell bent on killing you.”

The post, in which he declared, “The left wants to cater to the very group that would kill every group they claim to support . . . What will it take? This happening at a concert in Dallas or a school in Denton County? If we don’t do something quick this country will die of political correctness,” soon went viral. Murphree then went public to defend his remarks, which he stands by, though he refused a recent request for comment. During an interview with Fox Business, he said that his words were “on target” and claimed he was simply voicing the thoughts of many others over the last few years. He also stated he wrote the post with his own children and the citizens he is sworn to protect in mind.

“[The response] shocked me,” said Murphree. “I expected a lot of criticism from the left, from liberals, but I expected that more locally than worldwide. I don’t understand why a Texas sheriff’s Facebook post has gone worldwide.”

bottom of page