Originally published in the San Antonio Current. On a quiet Tuesday afternoon, San Antonio Mayor Ron Nirenberg is sitting alone at a window table at Tito’s Restaurant in Southtown, typing into his phone. As I walk toward him, I muse on the time our paths crossed in 2013. We were both guests on Chris Duel’s…
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With Infection Rates on the Rise, Metro Health Promotes Testing During STD Awareness Month
April is STD Awareness Month and the San Antonio Metropolitan Health District is using the occasion to initiate its new mobile testing van along with a campaign to test at least 4,000 Bexar County residents for sexually transmitted diseases. The campaign, tagged #IKnowMyStatusSA, kicked off last week with the testing van traveling the city manned…
LGBTQ Organizations Invited to Apply for Grants from Texas Pride Impact Funds
The Houston-based nonprofit, Texas Pride Impact Funds, announced on April 5 that it is accepting request for proposals from organizations around the state which provide support and services to the LGBTQ community. According to their website, “Texas Impact Funds exists to propel the LGBTQ movement in Texas by supporting nonprofits that help thousands of our…
Meet the Five LGBTQ Candidates Running for the San Antonio City Council
San Antonio voters in Districts 1, 4, 8 and 9 will have the opportunity to cast their ballots for an LGBTQ City Council candidate in the May 4 General Election. This election season brings five queer candidates, a record number. LGBTQ candidates have run for the City Council in the past including previous District 1…
Texas Senate Approves SB 17, a Bill LGBTQ Advocates Call a “License to Discriminate”
The bill passed on a 19–12 vote, with one Republican voting against it and one Democrat voting for it. It requires one more approval in the Senate before it heads to the Texas House. By Emma Platoff, The Texas Tribune After emotional testimony, a forceful show of opposition from leaders in the state’s business community…
Analysis: Texas Lawmakers Haven’t Sworn Off Culture Wars After All
Texas lawmakers are trying to focus on school finance and property taxes. But they’ve opened the door to state preemption of local laws that protect LGBT Texans. By Ross Ramsey, The Texas Tribune The leadership’s sales pitch for the current legislative session was all meat-and-potatoes, bread-and-butter stuff. No sharp objects, or frivolity or small-time political…
Outgoing San Antonio City Councilman Rey Saldaña Ain’t Afraid of No Ten-Foot Crocodile
Originally published in the San Antonio Current. With clear eyes and an effortless smile, San Antonio City Councilman Rey Saldaña is looking back on his eight-year tenure without a single regret. As he approaches his final days in office, his administrative workspace is filled with memories and milestones commemorating his role as the neighborhood-hero-makes-good representative…
USAA and Rackspace Score 100 on HRC’s Corporate Equality Index
Updated: March 29, 2019, 2:20 p.m. For the second time in as many years, two San Antonio companies were among the 571 businesses across the country that scored 100 on the Human Rights Campaign’s Corporate Equality Index. The United Services Automobile Association (USAA), which provides financial products to military members and families, and Rackspace, a…
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is Investigating SA for Kicking Chick-fil-A Out of Airport
“The Constitution’s protection of religious liberty is somehow even better than Chick-fil-A’s chicken,” Paxton wrote in a Thursday letter to San Antonio Mayor Ron Nirenberg and the rest of the council. By Emma Platoff, The Texas Tribune Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is investigating the city of San Antonio for potential First Amendment violations after…
Religious Refusal Bill SB 17 Moves Forward in Texas Senate
Originally published in the San Antonio Current. Remember when Republican Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick told the world there would be “no bathroom bill” this legislative session? Senate Bill 17, which advanced to the full Texas Senate earlier this week, may not ban transgender people from using public bathrooms, but its outcome is just as worrisome…