Bourne School Committee member Kari MacRae lost her appeal in federal court against Hanover school officials, who invoked the First Amendment. (Courtesy photo)

A local teacher who was fired over her controversial TikTok videos has lost her First Amendment appeal against the school district in federal court.

Kari MacRae sued school officials and the Hanover School District after she was fired from Hanover High School when her social media videos surfaced in 2021.

The math and economics teacher, who released videos about critical race theory, gender identity and other controversial topics as a candidate for the Bourne School Committee, ultimately lost the First Amendment case in the U.S. District Court in Massachusetts.

The free speech lawsuit was then appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit.

“Now that we are on appeal, MacRae implores us to course correct and correct what she believes the district court got wrong,” the appeals court wrote in its recent decision. “However, after taking the time to carefully consider both sides' arguments, we conclude that the district court got it right.”

While campaigning for the Bourne School Committee (before being hired as a teacher in Hanover), MacRae liked, shared, posted, or reposted several controversial memes on TikTok.

In a campaign video, she said: “The reason I ran for school board and why I'm taking on this responsibility is essentially to make sure that students, at least in our city, are not taught critical race theory. That they are not taught that the country was built on racism…

“…They are not taught that they can choose to be a girl or a boy,” MacRae added. “It's one thing to include others and another to be inclusive. And it's one thing to educate everyone about everything. It's a whole other thing to push your own agenda. … With me on the school board, that's not going to happen in our town.”