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A resurfaced social media post has placed an Oklahoma teacher under state investigation, threatening to end his teaching career.
In a 2019 Instagram post, Regan Killackey of Edmond Memorial High School posed with his children at a costume store. The photo depicted a mask resembling former President Donald Trump. According to KFOR-TV, one child held a plastic sword to the throat of the Trump-masked child while Killackey grimaced for the camera. Another child was pictured bringing a plastic knife down upon the mask’s head.
Oklahoma Schools Superintendent Ryan Walters did not take the post lightly. “There is never a time that threatening a former president is appropriate. We will not tolerate it in Oklahoma schools,” Walters posted on X (formerly Twitter) in July following the first assassination attempt against Trump. “Nobody will be allowed to teach in the state of Oklahoma if they advocate the assassination of President Trump or any elected official,” Walters stated at a state Board of Education meeting on July 31, as reported by KOTV-TV.
“We had images of knives being held to President Trump’s throat,” Walters added, asserting that the fact it was an old photo did not change his stance. “We cannot allow these individuals to continue to teach in the state of Oklahoma.”
There is never a time that threatening a former president is appropriate. We will not tolerate it in Oklahoma schools https://t.co/oTtRsGrUCj
— Superintendent Ryan Walters (@RyanWaltersSupt) September 18, 2024
Killackey, however, feels the reaction is unwarranted. “Well, number one, I was shocked,” Killackey said. “And number two, I thought it was some sort of mistake or some prank or something like that. Um, I didn’t because my entire career has been in the state of Oklahoma and I’ve been teaching for 21 years. I have been fortunate and blessed to have this career.”
Killackey is also one of several plaintiffs suing the state over HB 1775, a law banning the teaching of Critical Race Theory in Oklahoma schools. He previously expressed frustration to Education Week, saying, “Not being able to teach Critical Race Theory upsets me. Because … I want to talk about these things openly and honestly with all of my students, and they need to be talked about openly and honestly.”
