A planned Eid celebration at a city-owned waterpark in Texas has been canceled after days of political backlash, online criticism, and pressure from Texas Gov. Greg Abbott over claims of religious discrimination.
The controversy centered around “DFW Epic Eid,” an event scheduled for June 1 at Epic Waters Indoor Waterpark in Grand Prairie. The event was initially promoted online as a “Muslim only” gathering, which quickly drew criticism from conservative commentators and political figures who argued that a taxpayer-funded public facility could not legally restrict access based on religion.
Texas-based reporter and YouTuber Sara Gonzales was among the first to amplify the issue on social media. Celebrating the cancellation, she wrote on X, “The Muslim-only waterpark event is canceled! We did it! Thank you, @GregAbbott_TX.”
Earlier, Gonzales had posted what she described as an exclusive update involving Abbott’s office. She wrote, “🚨 EXCLUSIVE 🚨 Governor Greg Abbott’s office has sent a letter to the city of Grand Prairie threatening to pull their public safety grants if they don’t cancel the planned ‘Muslim-only’ water park day, citing state and federal statutes relating to civil rights and nondiscrimination. If the city doesn’t comply by May 11th, they will be required to repay the $530,000 they received from the state. Thank you, @GregAbbott_TX !!”
Abbott later reshared the post and issued his own statement on X, taking a hard line against the event.
“A city-owned water park in Grand Prairie openly advertised a ‘MUSLIMS ONLY’ event — closed to the general public,” Abbott wrote. “That’s religious discrimination. It’s unconstitutional. I signed HB 4211 into law — banning Muslim only no-go zones in Texas.”
He added, “The City must cancel the event and commit to never allowing something like it again by May 11th, or lose $530,000 in state grants. Let this be a lesson to local officials: Facilities funded by ALL taxpayers are not just for a subset of Texans.”
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The governor’s office had warned the city that more than $530,000 in state grant funding could be at risk if officials failed to act.
As criticism intensified, organizers reportedly updated the event description online to say that “all are welcome,” while still asking attendees to follow a modest dress code during the Eid celebration. Despite the changes, Abbott’s office maintained that the original advertising raised constitutional concerns tied to religious discrimination at a publicly owned venue.
The City of Grand Prairie ultimately decided to pull the plug on the event.
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“After further review and in the best interest of the City of Grand Prairie, the June 1 EID event at Epic Waters Indoor Waterpark has been canceled,” city spokesperson Beth Owens told Texas Scorecard.
The debate quickly spread across social media, with supporters of the cancellation arguing that publicly funded spaces must remain open to everyone regardless of religion. Others questioned whether private cultural celebrations at public venues were being unfairly targeted.
The incident has now become part of a larger political conversation in Texas around religion, public facilities, and how anti-discrimination laws apply to community events held at taxpayer-funded spaces.