Editor’s Note: This article has been updated to include additional context about SB 17’s application to sponsored and nonsponsored organizations. At 11:11 a.m., this story was updated to include a response from Vice President of Student Affairs Gene Fitch.
A University of Texas at Dallas graduate student has formally demanded that the university dissolve or restructure Student Government’s Diversity, Equity and Belonging Committee (DEB), saying that it violates Texas Senate Bill 17, a state law restricting certain diversity, equity and inclusion programs at public universities.
On July 6, David Blackman II sent an email to student-run media outlets including The Mercury, Vice President of Student Affairs Gene Fitch, the university’s Office of Institutional Compliance and Student Government President David Baker. In the letter, Blackman said that Student Government “is not an independent Registered Student Organization (RSO). It is an official, university-sponsored governing body.”
Blackman wrote there is “a clear legal distinction between independent RSOs and Sponsored Student Organizations (SSOs) or official university governance bodies,” and wrote that Student Government should not qualify for legally protected exemptions to independent student organizations.
SB 17 exempts the activities of registered student organizations from the DEI office ban without distinguishing between sponsored and nonsponsored organizations. The University of Texas System’s SB 17 Working Guidance states that sponsored student organizations “may be subject to the bill’s prohibitions” depending on the level of institutional control and the institution’s policies and practices.
The letter cited changes made to UT Austin’s Student Government as an example of how Blackman believes official student governance bodies may need to adjust structures to comply with SB 17.
Blackman wrote that changing the committee’s name does not avoid SB 17 restrictions.
“Substituting the word ‘inclusion’ for ‘belonging’ is a semantic distinction without a legal difference,” he wrote, adding that he believes the committee’s purpose resembles DEI initiatives restricted under SB 17.
“The continued operation of this committee exposes the university to significant legal and financial liabilities. As outlined in the statute, institutions that fail to comply with SB 17 face severe consequences, including the potential withholding of state funding following a compliance review by the Texas State Auditor’s Office,” Blackman wrote.
He called on UT Dallas to immediately suspend the committee’s operations, revise Student Government’s governing documents to “ensure strict” compliance with Texas Education Code § 51.3525 and issue a public statement confirming the committee’s dissolution or restructuring by July 20, 2026.
Blackman wrote he filed a Texas Public Information Act request seeking records related to Student Government’s spending on activities he alleges violate SB 17. He said he plans to submit the obtained financial records to the Texas State Auditor’s Office to request a formal compliance review.
“Failure to remedy this violation immediately will result in this matter being escalated to the University of Texas System Board of Regents, the State Auditor, and relevant oversight committees within the Texas State Legislature for further investigation regarding the university’s misappropriation of state and student funds in defiance of SB 17,” Blackman wrote.
When reached for additional comment by The Mercury Monday evening, Blackman said he believes the committee represents a misuse of state funds.
“They’re trying to create an even playing field for everybody. But by trying to create an even playing field for everybody, using our state funds, you are inadvertently creating a committee designed to serve a certain group of people. And that is where you make a mistake. In the view of SB 17, that’s where you cross the line,” Blackman said.
Baker told The Mercury on July 4 that student fees fund Student Government projects, not taxpayer money. Baker also said the activities provided by Student Government to students are “fully within our rights.”
Blackman said that unless the law is changed, he believes it should be enforced.
“I think a lot of people live in a fluffy, pink, fairy tale world where everybody is welcome the same, and everybody is equal, and everybody has the same opportunities and same things, and all of that. That is not the world that we live in,” he said. “And we have to play by the rules that have been put down. The laws that have been put down. And if we feel that a law goes too far, we either fix it at the ballot box or in the courts. We cannot, as a community, just violate laws.”
The Mercury has reached out to Student Government President David Baker, Student Government Vice President Farhan Iqbal and Diversity, Equity and Belonging Committee Chair Nivedha Maniv, as well as Vice President of Student Affairs Gene Fitch for comment.
Baker told The Mercury that Student Government’s executive team will meet before making any public comment on the matter. Fitch wrote to The Mercury “I don’t have comments related to this.” Baker and Fitch are the only ones who have responded so far.
Blackman previously said that in mid-June, he had advocated for the Pride mural located in the Student Services Addition to be removed. The mural was covered over last Friday, following days of online criticism of its presence, though there has been no official statement about why it was covered or who authorized its removal.
Before enrolling at UT Dallas, Blackman withdrew from Penn State Dickinson Law after one semester, according to the Washington Free Beacon. He was quoted at the time as saying he did so because a required anti-racism course compelled students to express views with which he disagreed.
“My law degree is not worth sitting through a mandatory DEI class that spits on my entire background,” Blackman reportedly told the Washington Free Beacon.
This is a breaking news story. The Mercury will update coverage as new information emerges.
Update on July 7, 12:20 p.m.:
In what appears to be a response to Blackman’s actions regarding diversity, equity and inclusion representation on campus, an unidentified individual tacked up posters around campus that include a photo of Blackman along with the words, “PEDOPHILE PROTECTOR,” in at least two locations on the morning of Tuesday, July 7.
A Mercury staff member reported seeing an individual wearing a hat and mask post the flyers on a bulletin board by the Plinth around 10:13 a.m. Additional posters were reported as appearing on several bulletin boards in JSOM around 10:50 a.m., though they were not present when Mercury staff arrived to take photographs at noontime. It is unclear if those are the only affected locations at this time.
The Mercury has reached out to Blackman for comment and will update the article as more information becomes available.
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Update on July 7 10:32 p.m.:
A Student Media member reported to The Mercury that the posters near the Plinth were gone before 1 p.m. Blackman responded to a request for comment, saying he directed his legal counsel to “monitor this situation closely as a criminal matter.”
J • Jul 7, 2026 at 2:10 am
What a sicko I’m so tired of utd bowing down to every dog that barks