By Emma Platoff, Texas Tribune March 13, 2018 Editor’s note: This story has been updated throughout. Gov. Greg Abbott himself was opposed to the controversial “bathroom bill” that dominated debate at the Texas Capitol for much of 2017, according to a state representative involved in keeping the legislation from passing the Texas House. State Rep.…
Houston Trans Woman is 28th Murdered in U.S. This Year
A transgender woman, who was gunned down at the corner of Brandon and Red Bud Streets in Houston’s Sunnyvale neighborhood on December 13, has become the 28th trans person murdered in the U.S. in 2017. Twenty-six-year-old Debarione “Brandi” Seals was in her car around 6 a.m. Neighbors told Fox 26 they heard a series of…
Man Sentenced in Murder of Texas Trans Woman
A 30-year-old man from Childress, Texas has been found guilty and sentenced to 20 years in jail for the 2016 murder of a 43-year-old Austin transgender woman. During the trial, which began in late October, JonCasey Rowell admitted to shooting Monica Loera at close range in what he said was an act of self-defense. Rowell…
Transgender Day of Remembrance to be Observed in SA on Nov. 16
San Antonio’s LGBT community will come together to observe the Transgender Day of Remembrance on November 16 with events slated for downtown San Antonio. The evening begins at 6 p.m. when Pride Center San Antonio presents a Memorial Celebration of Lives Lost in Travis Park. At 7 p.m., the observance moves indoors for a service…
Sen. Menéndez: Bathroom Bill Is ‘Assault Against Basic Human Dignity’
State Sen. Jose Menéndez issued a statement denouncing the bathroom bill which passed in the Texas Senate on July 25 in a 21 to 10 vote after an 8-hour debate. “I have voted against this bill time and time again and will continue to condemn this offensive legislation in the name of respect and decency…
National Episcopal Church Urges Defeat of Texas “Bathroom Bill”
By Alexa Ura, The Texas Tribune July 20, 2017 As the Texas Senate prepares to consider legislation to restrict bathroom use for transgender Texans in legislative overtime, the national Episcopal Church is renewing its opposition to such proposals. Citing the “emotional and spiritual damage that discrimination does to transgender people,” top leaders of the national…
IBM Kicks Off Major Campaign Against Texas Legislature’s Bathroom Bill
Originally published in the San Antonio Current. With the Texas Legislature’s special session a week away, tech company IBM has ramped up its efforts to oppose the s0-called “bathroom bill” for its discriminatory effects against transgender Texans. The company, which has 10,000 employees in Texas purchased full-page advertisements in the Dallas Morning News, San Antonio…
Patrick, Straus deadlocked over “bathroom bill”
By Alexa Ura, The Texas Tribune May 26, 2017 Editor’s note: This story has been updated throughout. The Texas Legislature appears to be at a stalemate on a “bathroom bill” that could push the legislative session into overtime. Refusing to go any further to regulate bathroom use for transgender Texans, House Speaker Joe Straus said…
Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick Supports “House Companion” to “Bathroom Bill”
By Patrick Svitek, The Texas Tribune April 28, 2017 HOUSTON — Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick expressed support Friday for “a House companion” to the Texas Senate’s “bathroom bill” that has been one of his biggest priorities this session. “Senate Bill 6 — or a House companion — we need to pass,” Patrick said during remarks…
Dan Patrick Says Economic Concerns Over Anti-Trans Bill Are “Bogus”
Originally published in the San Antonio Current According to Texas Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick, passing a bill that allows business owners to discriminate against transgender Texans won’t have any economic impact on the state. “I don’t know of any business that hasn’t moved to Houston because of the issue,” said Patrick at a Monday press…