Originally published in the San Antonio Current. This week, trans individuals, their loved ones and members of their community showed up at the Texas state capitol to lobby and voice their opposition to Senate Bill 6, also known as the bathroom bill. I tried my best to watch a live stream of the bill’s hearing,…
Democratic State Senator Says He Supports Bathroom Bill
Democratic state Sen. Eddie Lucio, Jr. of Brownsville announced at a press conference on March 6 that he will vote in support of Senate Bill 6, the so-called bathroom bill being championed by Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick. SB6 bars transgender people from using the bathroom that matches their gender identity and would prohibit local ordinances…
HRC Opens Field Office in SA
The Human Rights Campaign officially opened a field office in San Antonio on Sunday, March 5 with scores of activists on hand for the occasion. The office, located at 315 9th Street in San Antonio, is one of four field offices HRC is opening in the state. The others are located in Austin, Houston and…
SA Already Losing Business Because of Texas Anti-Trans Bill
Originally published in the San Antonio Current. The big business argument against the anti-trans bill brewing at the Texas legislature has been that businesses and organizations will stop coming to a state whose leaders openly discriminate against a whole group of people. While Lieutenant Gov. Dan Patrick, the bill’s main pusher in Austin, has called…
Richard Linklater Directs Ad Targeting Texas’ Anti-Trans “Bathroom Bill”
Originally published in the San Antonio Current Fear is at the heart of Texas conservatives’ push for a bill that would block transgender Texans from using the restroom that corresponds with their gender identity — a baseless fear that equal rights for transgender people will endanger women and young girls in public restrooms. So in…
Abbott Mocks NFL for Opposing Anti-Trans Bill
Originally published in the San Antonio Current Governor Greg Abbott decided to attack the NFL over Twitter this weekend for its threat to halt future Texas Super Bowls if Abbott signs an anti-transgender bill into law. In a brief Friday email, NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy told the Associated Press that a discriminatory law like Texas’…
Mayoral Candidates at Town Hall Questioned About Anti-Trans Bill
Three mayoral candidates attending a town hall sponsored by the Rivard Report on February 7 at the Pearl Stable were asked to comment on Senate Bill 6, the anti-trans bathroom bill under consideration by the Texas Legislature. SB6 bars transgender people from using the bathroom that matches their gender identity and would prohibit local ordinances…
Keeping Track of Pro and Anti-LGBT Bills in Texas Legislature
The 85th Texas Legislature opened on January 10, starting a 140-day work session with a Republican majority. So far this session, 17 pro-LGBT bills and four anti-LGBT bills have been filed. Among the bills proposed to benefit LGBT Texans is legislation repealing laws that are still on the books which punish homosexual conduct; prohibiting discrimination…
Lt. Gov. Patrick Unleashes Anti-Transgender Bill
Originally published in the San Antonio Current Texas Lieutenant Gov. Dan Patrick began his Thursday press conference introducing a bill that would segregate transgender people from the general public by quoting Martin Luther King, Jr.: “Our lives begin to end the day we become silent on things that matter.” But not once during his press…