The Goldwater Institute is going to court in defense of a Tucson teacher who spoke out against the Common Core education standards.

The suit is based on the First Amendment right of Americans to speak out on important issues, without fear of reprisal, said a senior attorney for the Goldwater Institute.

Teacher Brad McQueen was paid to serve on several committees advising the state Department of Education on things like standardized testing, until he spoke out against Common Core in a newspaper article.

The suit says at that point, McQueen was removed from the committees, even if they had nothing to do with Common Core, notes were put in his Department of Education file that could impact future employment, and he allegedly was disparaged in department e-mail.

The suit seeks McQueen’s reinstatement to committees that do not involve Common Core, and wants his record cleared of info about his opposition to the education standards.