San Antonio-area U.S. Rep. Tony Gonzales was the sole Texas Republican to vote for the legislation, while U.S. Rep. Chip Roy voted against it. Nearly every Republican member of the U.S. House from Texas voted in opposition Tuesday to a bill that would codify same-sex marriage under federal law. San Antonio-area U.S. Rep. Tony Gonzales was the…
Forgoing LGBTQ Issues, Owner of Pegasus Club Wins Republican Run Off for Congressional Seat
Mauro E. Garza, the owner of the Pegasus Nightclub, which is located on the Main Avenue Strip, has won the Republican run off beating opponent Mike Allen in the race for the 20th Congressional District with more than 60 percent of the votes. In the November election, Garza will face Democratic incumbent Joaquin Castro, who is…
Texas House Schedules Hearings for Two ‘Extreme’ Anti-LGBTQ Bills
The State Affairs committee of the Texas House of Representatives has scheduled hearings on April 17 for what Equality Texas is calling “the two most extreme anti-LGBTQ bills filed this session.” The first bill, HB 1035, which was introduced by Rep. William Zedler (R-Arlington), grants special rights to discriminate for people who hold the belief…
Lawyers Produce Catalog with List of Bexar County Judges Who Will Marry Same-Sex Couples
The San Antonio Young Lawyer’s Association and the San Antonio LGBT Bar Association have unveiled a catalog which provides local same sex couples with information about how to obtain a marriage license and a list of Bexar County judicial officials who will marry them with a commitment to equality. The project, dubbed Will You Marry…
Travis Park UMC Stands with LGBTQ Congregants After Denomination Votes to Ban Marriage Equality and Gay Clergy
The senior pastor of the Travis Park United Methodist Church in San Antonio says he is feeling angry and hurt after the General Conference of The United Methodist Church voted on February 26 to prohibit same-sex weddings and LGBTQ clergy. However, in a letter to Travis Park congregants shortly after the vote, the Rev. Eric…
Houston Judge Tosses Same-Sex Marriage Benefits Challenge, but Plaintiffs Pledge to Appeal
A newly elected Democratic judge issued the decision in the latest turn of a 2013 legal challenge to Houston’s policy extending benefits to municipal employees’ same-sex spouses. By Emma Platoff, The Texas Tribune A Houston judge has thrown out the six-year-old lawsuit a pair of Houston taxpayers filed to keep the city from paying spousal…
Republican State Rep. Files Bill Legalizing Discrimination Against Trans People and Married LGBT Couples
State Representative Bill Zedler (R-Arlington) has filed a bill, dubbed the “Free to Believe Act,” that would legalize discrimination against transgender people and married LGBT couples. In an email to its supporters, Equality Texas warns the bill, HB 1035, “would legally protect discrimination in healthcare, in social services, in the workplace, in access to housing,…
A County Clerk in Texas Who Still Won’t Sign Same Sex Marriage Licenses
When the the Supreme Court of the United States ruled on June 26, 2015 that the fundamental right to marry is guaranteed to same-sex couples, there was push-back across the country from scores of local authorities who vowed not to issue marriage licenses to these couples. While most of that opposition has now been quelled,…
Commentary: Wedding Cake Debate Will Create a Backlash
This commentary was originally published in the San Antonio Express-News. It is reprinted here with the permission of the author. “To cake! or not to cake!” that is the question. The judges’ decision is final. And the winner is? Who knew that cake decorating could be so confrontational? And, as I like to say from…
Erika and Shay Forbes-Wilson on Building ‘The Real Power Couples’
“Fall in love, stay in love, using the power of your love.” That is the motto of Reverend Erika Forbes-Wilson and Shay Forbes-Wilson, founders of the San Antonio-based endeavor The Real Power Couples. With marriage equality now a reality, officiants Erika, an ordained interfaith minister, and Shay, a personal trainer, are on a mission to…