University professors fight Texas law allowing guns in class

Three University of Texas professors have filed an action in federal court in a bid to halt a state law that lets people with concealed handgun licences bring pistols into classrooms, saying the measure would have a chilling effect on academic freedom.

The law, passed by a Republican-led legislature and signed by a Republican governor, is due to take effect on August 1. The lawsuit was filed in the US district court in Austin on Wednesday.

The law permits concealed-handgun licence holders aged 21 and older to bring handguns into classrooms and buildings throughout the University of Texas system, one of the nation’s largest, with an enrolment of more than 214,000 students.