Assclown Alert is a column of opinion, analysis and snark. It’s tempting to write off Clayton Perry, the sole conservative on San Antonio’s largely progressive city council, as a loveable curmudgeon. After all, he’s more folksy than brash in his contrarian stances, not exactly someone prone to Trumpian tantrums. But Perry’s vote against last week’s…
Lauryn Farris, a key advocate for transgender equality in San Antonio, has died
Lauryn Farris, a leading voice for transgender advocacy in San Antonio, has died, according to an San Antonio Express-News report. Farris was remembered for working on the Alamo City’s nondiscrimination ordinance and for fighting the Republican-controlled Texas Legislature’s failed 2017 push to bar transgender people from public restrooms. She died on July 27 following a…
As State Legislature convenes, Equality Texas warns of bills targeting trans youth
The Texas Legislature convened for its 2021 session on January 12 and already Republican politicians, Representative Steve Toth and Senator Charles Perry, are targeting transgender youth with bills which Equality Texas says will put these young people “under a harmful spotlight.” In an email to its members, Equality Texas described the two proposed bills. “Toth’s…
Another Trans Woman Found Dead in Dallas
The body of a transgender woman was found floating in White Rock Lake in Dallas on June 1 marking the fourth case of violence against trans women in the city in the last eight months. All four victims are African American. The latest casualty is 26-year-old Chynal Lindsey, a resident of Arlington. At a press…
UT Student Loses ROTC Scholarship as a Result of Trump’s Transgender Troop Ban
A trans student from San Antonio who attends the University of Texas at Austin has lost his three-year Army ROTC scholarship as a result of President Trump’s newly-instituted policy banning transgender people from serving in the military. UT freshman Map Pesqueira’s scholarship was voided by the Department of Defense on April 12, the day the…
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…
San Antonio Trans Woman Finds Success With Career in Real Estate
A San Antonio transgender woman has just become the founding president of the San Antonio chapter of the National Association of Gay and Lesbian Real Estate Professionals (NAGLREP), making her the first trans person to be in a leadership position with the organization. For Jamie Zapata, helping establish NAGLREP’s local chapter is a career milestone.…
Esperanza Center to Screen Documentary About Trans Filipina Murdered by American G.I.
The Esperanza Peace and Justice Center, the San Antonio Gender Association, and the Transgender Education Network of Texas will host the screening on November 18 of a documentary that tells the story of a transgender Filipina who was murdered in 2014 by a U.S. Marine who was on leave in the Philippines. The film, Call…
Transgender Day of Remembrance Events Set for Nov. 20 in San Antonio
San Antonio’s LGBTQ community will observe the Transgender Day of Remembrance on November 20 with a vigil in Travis Park and a service at Travis Park United Methodist Church. The San Antonio Gender Association annually hosts the observance in solidarity with Pride Center San Antonio and other local LGBTQ organizations, The Transgender Day of Remembrance…
Luther’s Cafe to Screen ‘Transpose’ Documentary
Luther’s Cafe will host a screening of Transpose, a documentary that examines the challenges transgender people face as they go through their transition and seek to forge ahead with their new lives. The film is a project of Arttitude, a Dallas-based nonprofit organization which serves to unite the LGBT community “with the goal of inciting…