Where you can protest
Public streets, sidewalks and parks are traditional public forums. The government may set reasonable, content-neutral rules on time, place and manner, but it cannot shut down speech because of its message. Offensive or provocative political speech, including flag burning in a Texas case, is protected. Texas v. Johnson, 491 U.S. 397 (1989); Snyder v. Phelps, 562 U.S. 443 (2011).
The dispersal-order rule
Texas Penal Code 42.04 gives protesters an important protection. When the conduct is speech, gathering to hear speech, or nonviolent picketing or expression on social, economic, political or religious issues, and you have not yet intentionally harmed the interests of others, police must first order you to move, disperse or fix the problem before arresting you for unreasonable noise, obstructing a passageway, or disrupting a funeral service. It is a defense if no order was given, if the order was manifestly unreasonable, or if you promptly obeyed. If police order you to leave, the safest course is to comply and challenge the order later.
Charges police use at protests
- Disorderly conduct (Penal Code 42.01). Covers language that tends to incite an immediate breach of the peace, unreasonable noise, fighting, and displaying a firearm in a manner calculated to alarm. Most forms are fine-only Class C offenses.
- Obstructing a highway or passageway (Penal Code 42.03). Blocking a street, sidewalk or entrance without legal privilege, or refusing a reasonable order to move. Usually a Class B misdemeanor. Blocking an emergency vehicle running lights or siren, or blocking access to a hospital, is a state jail felony.
- Riot (Penal Code 42.02). Knowingly participating in an assembly of seven or more people whose conduct creates an immediate danger of injury or property damage, obstructs law enforcement, or uses force to deprive someone of a legal right. A lawful protest that turns violent is the risk; if the assembly was lawful at first, it is a defense that you left when others showed an intent to riot. Leave when it turns violent.
- Disrupting a meeting or procession (Penal Code 42.05). Counter-protesters may speak, but physically or verbally interfering with a lawful gathering to stop it is a Class B misdemeanor. Never touch, block or threaten the other side.
Carrying at a protest
Lawful carry is allowed at many public demonstrations, but carrying a firearm in a way calculated to alarm can be disorderly conduct, and some protest locations, such as government meetings and polling places, are off limits. Read our guide to carrying a handgun in Texas before you go.
On public college campuses
A 2025 Texas law, Senate Bill 2972, requires public universities to restrict expressive activity on campus between 10 p.m. and 8 a.m., and to limit invited speakers, amplified sound and drums during the last two weeks of a term (Education Code 51.9315). In 2025, a federal court in Texas found key parts of these restrictions content-based on their face in a challenge brought by University of Texas students (Fellowship of Christian University Students v. Eltife, 806 F. Supp. 3d 662 (W.D. Tex. 2025)). Rules may differ by school, so check your university's current policy.
If you are arrested
- Stay calm and do not resist, even if you believe the arrest is wrong.
- Give your name, address and date of birth once you are arrested. Never give false information.
- Say, "I am going to remain silent. I want a lawyer." Then stop talking.
- Do not consent to a search of your phone. Officers generally need a warrant to search it.
- As soon as you can, write down officer names, badge numbers and witnesses, and save any video.
An arrest for protected speech can support a civil rights lawsuit for First Amendment retaliation. Learn about civil rights lawsuits.
Sources: Tex. Penal Code 38.02, 42.01, 42.02, 42.03, 42.04, 42.05, 42.055; Texas v. Johnson, 491 U.S. 397 (1989); Snyder v. Phelps, 562 U.S. 443 (2011); Ward v. Rock Against Racism, 491 U.S. 781 (1989); S.B. 2972 (89th Leg., 2025); Tex. Educ. Code 51.9315; Fellowship of Christian Univ. Students v. Eltife, 806 F. Supp. 3d 662 (W.D. Tex. 2025); Riley v. California, 573 U.S. 373 (2014). Reviewed November 2026. This guide is general information, not legal advice for your situation.