Despite warnings from companies across Texas that a “bathroom bill” would be bad for business, Lt. Governor Dan Patrick remains steadfast in his plan to support the proposed law in the upcoming legislative session. The bill would prohibit transgender people in Texas from using bathrooms that match their gender identity. Dubbed the Women’s Privacy and…
Texas House Speaker Says Bathroom Bill Not ‘Urgent Concern’
Texas House Speaker Joe Straus says that a transgender bathroom bill “. . . isn’t the most urgent concern of mine . . . I know the lieutenant governor is very enthusiastic about this idea. Let him run with it. We’ll see what the House wants to do.” Straus, a Republican who represents San Antonio’s…
‘Daily Show’ Host Trevor Noah Brings Live Comedy Tour to SA
Perhaps no other late night comic has articulated the absurdity of the so-called “trans panic epidemic” better than The Daily Show’s Trevor Noah. In an episode that aired earlier this year, Noah lambasted supporters of the many anti-LGBT “bathroom bills” being proposed around the country. “If you replace ‘transgender’ with any other group in society,…
Metamorphoses: Medical Transition and Where Gatekeeping Is Headed
Like a large portion of transgender women, I have experienced immense difficulty accessing the proper care that I’ve required to medically transition. When I first came out publicly as a trans woman, one of my goals was to start hormone replacement therapy (HRT) as soon as possible, but I quickly learned that it isn’t as…
Texas Judge Issues Injunction Against Protections for Trans Students
Originally published in the San Antonio Current. A federal judge in Fort Worth ruled late Sunday that conservative states that oppose allowing trans kids in public schools to use the bathroom that corresponds with their gender identity won’t face punishment for maintaining the status quo. U.S. District Judge Reed O’Connor issued a nationwide injunction stopping…
Inclusive Environment Important to Keeping NCAA Tourney in SA
San Antonio civic leaders are concerned the 2017 session of the state legislature could enact new anti-LGBT laws which would stifle the ability to attract events like the NCAA Final Four basketball tournament which the city is scheduled to host in 2018. The discussion of the effects of such legislation was part of a presentation…
Texas, Other States File to Stop Education Dept. Trans Bathroom Policy
Thirteen states, led by Texas, today submitted a legal filing with a U.S. judge in Fort Worth asking to halt the implementation of the U.S. Education Department’s directive which says schools should allow students to use the restroom that matches their gender identity. The states say the guidelines represent unlawful “radical changes.” The hearing is…
Workshop: Back to School Challenges for Trans Kids
With the new school year just around the corner, the Esperanza Peace and Justice Center is hosting a workshop on how to navigate possible school-related problems when you are the parent of a trans child. The workshop, Son Tus Niños También: Trans Kids Back To School, will address the legal rights of trans children and…
Political Art Month on the Chartreuse Couch
Ask your doctor if political art is right for you. May cause hindsight, nausea, projectile vomiting, heart palpitations, sweaty palms, bowel irregularity, dry mouth, high blood pressure, blurred vision, violent laughter, and other uncontrollable irritations. But relax it is only art. With your host, Gene Elder It is impossible to ignore politics, especially now, and it will be…
Restroom Issue Prompts SA Trans Teen to Speak Out
A San Antonio trans teenager is sharing her story of being bullied by classmates when, because of school policy, she had to use the boy’s restroom. In an interview with KABB-TV, Catizia Izzy Farris said, “People would throw water bottles at me they would push me into the stall. They would cuss at me a…