By Robert Downen | HOUSTON, Texas – Prominent anti-LGBTQ+ attorney and former Harris County GOP chair Jared Woodfill is running for the Texas House and to replace House Speaker Dade Phelan.

Woodfill announced his candidacy for House District 138 this week, touting his legal challenges to COVID-19 mandates and LGBTQ+ legislation, and the four “Republican sweeps” that Harris County Republicans saw during his tenure as the local GOP’s leader from 2002 to 2014.

He’s running against incumbent Republican Rep. Lacey Hull, who was first elected to represent the northwest Houston district in 2020 with backing from Gov. Greg Abbott and U.S. Rep. Dan Crenshaw, R-Houston. Hull was ranked as one of the most conservative members of the Texas House this year based on an analysis of voting records by Rice University political scientist Mark Jones.

Woodfill’s campaign has already tried to frame Hull as a Republican in Name Only — RINO — by citing D ratings from two conservative activist groups. His campaign also accuses her of conspiring with Phelan — a longtime nemesis of Woodfill and other ultraconservative Texas Republicans — to “undermine” conservative legislation and impeach Attorney General Ken Paxton.

“The entire episode was an example of why ‘RINOs’ in Austin must be voted out of office,” Woodfill’s campaign website states. “Woodfill will be ready on Day 1 to bring decency back to HD 138, and return our conservative grassroots values back to the Texas House of Representatives.”

Woodfill and Hull could not be reached for comment Friday.

Woodfill has for years been at the helm of conservative Christian and anti-LGBTQ+ movements in Houston and Texas. In 2015, he and well-known Houston GOP powerbroker and anti-gay activist Dr. Steven Hotze played key roles in the defeat of an ordinance that would have extended equal rights protections to LGBTQ+ Houstonians, during which they compared gay people to Nazis and helped popularize “groomer” rhetoric.

The two have remained close, leading a pro-Paxton fundraising group during the attorney general’s impeachment this summer and spearheading legal challenges to COVID-19 closure mandates and election results in Harris County. Woodfill is also representing Hotze in a criminal investigation stemming from a 2020 incident in which a private investigator, allegedly acting at Hotze’s behest, held at gunpoint an air-conditioning repairman who he believed was transporting fake ballots.

Woodfill has faced his own legal issues: He has for years been at the center of an ongoing lawsuit in which a man accuses Woodfill’s former law partner and Southern Baptist leader Paul Pressler of decades of sexual abuse. In March, The Texas Tribune reported that Woodfill testified under oath that he was alerted in 2004 about child sexual abuse allegations against Pressler, who Woodfill was representing at the time in an assault lawsuit that was settled for $450,000. Despite that, Woodfill continued to work with Pressler, providing him with a string of young, male personal assistants who worked out of Pressler’s home. The lawsuit is set for trial early next year.

In 2018, Woodfill was also investigated for money laundering by the Harris County District Attorney’s Office after being accused of misappropriating funds from two clients of his law firm, though no charges were filed.

Hull cruised to reelection in HD 138 last year, beating her Democratic opponent Stephanie Morales by 15 percentage points — or about 8,000 votes.

Disclosure: Rice University has been a financial supporter of The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that is funded in part by donations from members, foundations and corporate sponsors. Financial supporters play no role in the Tribune’s journalism. Find a complete list of them here.

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Robert Downen is a reporter covering democracy and the threats to it, including extremism, disinformation and conspiracies. Before joining the Tribune in 2022, he worked for five years at the Houston Chronicle. As a Hearst Media fellow, he developed what would become “Abuse of Faith,” a landmark investigation into child sexual abuse in the Southern Baptist Convention that prompted a Department of Justice investigation.

Before coming to Texas, Robert was a business reporter in New York’s capital region, and the managing editor of six newspapers in his home state of Illinois. He is a 2014 graduate of Eastern Illinois University.

The preceding article was previously published by The Texas Tribune and is republished by permission.

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Quality journalism doesn’t come free

Perhaps it goes without saying — but producing quality journalism isn’t cheap. At a time when newsroom resources and revenue across the country are declining, The Texas Tribune remains committed to sustaining our mission: creating a more engaged and informed Texas with every story we cover, every event we convene and every newsletter we send. As a nonprofit newsroom, we rely on members to help keep our stories free and our events open to the public. Do you value our journalism? Show us with your support.

Donation Link Here: (Link)

By Ayden Runnels | DENTON — A rural North Texas school board on Friday agreed to launch an investigation into how a transgender student temporarily lost his role in the high school musical — an administrative decision that thrust the small town into the national debate over LGBTQ+ rights.

The board also stripped the school district’s superintendent of his duties overseeing the fine arts department, pending the outcome of the investigation.

The Sherman school board’s decision Friday afternoon is the latest flashpoint since Max Hightower, a senior at Sherman High School, was told he would lose his role — and solo — in the musical earlier this month.

The school board previously reversed that decision, directing school leadership to reinstate Hightower and other students in their original roles in “Oklahoma!” — a quintessential American musical about love and statehood.

The board’s decision seems to counter Texas’s political reality. For several years, Republicans and conservative policymakers at all levels have sought to limit transgender rights. Nearby schools in suburban Dallas have pushed book bans and policies that require teachers to call students by the name on their birth certificate and use similar gender pronouns. The Legislature this year also banned gender-affirming treatment for minors, even with parental permission.

And yet the school board’s actions reaffirms what Max Hightower, 17, and his parents have long felt about their rural town. Until the musical controversy, Max said he largely felt accepted here.

“I’ve never had any issues,” Max said. “That’s why I was so surprised.”

Public backlash for the decision to recast Max and other students was swift — dozens of news articles and multiple statements from organizations across the nation condemned the move.

The school board meeting Friday was a stage of its own, with dozens of Sherman residents giving impassioned public comments both for and against Sherman ISD Superintendent Tyson Bennett. One commenter had to be removed by security after he refused to cede his time.

Community pastors and former school employees lined up to support Bennett. They said the board’s decision to give Max his role back was more than enough.

“Get your pound of flesh somewhere else,” former Sherman ISD employee Bob Jones said during the meeting.

Those who suggested Bennett should be either fired — or at the least reprimanded — called the decision illegal and cited Title IX, the federal civil rights law prohibiting discrimination based on gender. Others called for investigations into how the superintendent handled this situation and others in the past, as some parents called the move a “pattern” of behavior.

The board voted unanimously both to approve the hiring of an investigator and to remove Bennett from supervising the fine arts programs. Sherman ISD’s chief academic officer Amy Pesina will oversee fine arts programs in the interim.

Bennett has served as Sherman’s superintendent since May 2022, and has been met with criticisms from parents since the beginning of his tenure. Bennett introduced the “Stand in the Gap” program, which encourages local churches to be more involved with the district, and invited pastors to say prayer during one of the district’s convocations, a move several parents described as “inappropriate.”

The board’s decision on Friday is a “little win” to Phillip Hightower, Max’s father, but he says Bennett is still “dangerous” to LGBTQ+ students in the district.

“It’s great that he won’t interact with the fine arts,” Phillip said. “But what about all the other students?”

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Ayden Runnels is a reporting fellow based in Denton, Texas. Ayden was born in the Houston suburb of Clear Lake and speaks English and Arabic. They serve as editor-in-chief of the North Texas Daily, the University of North Texas’ student-run newspaper, and have worked on freelance projects for Newsweek and the Chronicle of Higher Education.

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The preceding article was previously published by The Texas Tribune and is republished by permission.

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Quality journalism doesn’t come free

Perhaps it goes without saying — but producing quality journalism isn’t cheap. At a time when newsroom resources and revenue across the country are declining, The Texas Tribune remains committed to sustaining our mission: creating a more engaged and informed Texas with every story we cover, every event we convene and every newsletter we send. As a nonprofit newsroom, we rely on members to help keep our stories free and our events open to the public. Do you value our journalism? Show us with your support.

Donation Link Here: (Link)

Related:

Texas high school trans boy restored to the lead role in ‘Oklahoma!’

By Erin Reed | SHERMAN, Texas – In a crowded school board meeting, Sherman Independent School District’s community convened to discuss the recent controversy over the barring of transgender boy from playing a leading male role in the high school play ‘Oklahoma!’.

The week before, the district had prohibited transgender student Max Hightower from playing the role of Ali Hakim, a male lead character, citing differences between his assigned sex at birth and the character’s gender. This decision sparked a nationwide backlash, leading the district to propose a modified version of the play with fewer roles intended for young children.

Yet, at Monday’s packed meeting, more than 60 attendees voiced their support for Max, criticizing the board for singling out a transgender boy who simply sought to perform in a role he had rightfully earned. After extended deliberation, the board reconvened and voted unanimously to permit Max to assume his role, accompanied by an official apology.

Max Hightower, a 17-year-old transgender boy, was at the center of the recent school board controversy. Following his successful earning of the role of Ali Hakim, the principal convened members of the cast to announce that the casting and the play contravened school policies.

Subsequently, the school updated its website to state, “As it pertains to this specific production, the sex of the character as defined in the script will be the basis for casting.” This decision left students without their production of ‘Oklahoma!’, which was set to open in just a month and for which rehearsals were already underway.

It also meant that moving forward, nobody would be able to play a role that did not match their assigned sex at birth, a policy that stands at odds with both transgender inclusion and the history of theatre itself, where cross-gender casting has existed for centuries.

The controversy blew up around the United States. PEN America, a major freedom of speech organization, called the decision cruel and demanded that the play “continue as originally cast and planned.” NBC News covered the decision to bar the student and cancel the play. Influential transgender activist Charlotte Clymer mused, “do they not teach Shakespeare at this high school?” ESPN’s Sarah Spain remarked, “Save kids from (the centuries-old practice of) genderbending in theatre!”

Sensing that the district was losing ground on its fight, the district then modified the policy to state that playing different genders was acceptable, but that they would be switching the script to a 1-hour long version of Oklahoma! meant for kids. The new script specifically states that is for “pre-high school students” with “younger attention spans.” This move seemingly alienated as many people as the first decision, leading to the community to come together and demand a full restoration of the play and Max’s role in a tense school board meeting.

The meeting opened with Max’s father, Philip Highwater, who remarked that the new version of the play would cut Max’s major part in the show, stating, “This was the biggest role Max ever had, this was a solo.” Following that, people young and old stepped up to the microphone to voice their support for Max to thunderous applause while Max himself sat and listened in the audience.

One of Max’s fellow cast members, Lucy, spoke out about how the theatre teachers at the school taught her important lessons about the play, stagecraft, collaboration, and teamwork with the production. She then remarked, “then, a little over a weak ago, our principal brought some of our classmates into his office, and we all learned some new lessons… about prejudice, transphobia, and discrimination.”

Watch her speech here:

Another alumnus of the school, Jonathon Morris, spoke about his anger at the decision to remove Max and change the play. Expressing dismay, he called out the school board, stating that he was “appalled to see that the bullies had moved from the hallways to administration offices and this school board.” Though the school board tried to quiet him after doing so, he did not stop speaking. He went on to state to one of the board members, “your son was in two theatrical productions with me. How you can sit here now and try to take away this opportunity from [Max] is completely beyond my comprehension.”

Watch Jonathon’s speech:

Following dozens more people speaking out against the policy, the school board then took a break that lasted over two hours. When they returned, they voted unanimously for a resolution that would restore Max’s role to the play and restore the full ‘Oklahoma!’ production itself with the following apology:

“We want to apologize to our students, parents and our community regarding the circumstances that they have had to go through to this date. We understand that our decision does not erase the impact this had on our community, but we hope that we will reinforce to everyone, particularly our students, that we do embrace all of our Board goals, to include addressing the diverse needs of our students and empowering them for success in a diverse and complex world. The Board is committed to uphold its ethical duties to include being continuously guided by what is best for all students in our District.”

Related:

20 more Texas students lose their theatre roles over gender policy

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Erin Reed is a transgender woman (she/her pronouns) and researcher who tracks anti-LGBTQ+ legislation around the world and helps people become better advocates for their queer family, friends, colleagues, and community. Reed also is a social media consultant and public speaker.

Follow her on Twitter (Link)

Website here: https://www.erininthemorning.com/

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The preceding article was first published at Erin In The Morning and is republished with permission.

SHERMAN, Texas – The student-run production of the classic Rodgers and Hammerstein musical ‘Oklahoma!’ for Sherman High School has encountered even more controversy after a new Sherman ISD rule allowing theater students to only be cast in roles matching their birth gender has cost about 20 students their parts.

Earlier this week, senior Max Hightower, had landed the lead male role in ‘Oklahoma!’ and then promptly lost the role after the school’s principal, in a phone call with Max’s father Phillip Hightower, told him there was a new policy that “actors and actresses could only play a role that was the same gender they were assigned at birth.”

Because Max identifies as a transgender male, he could no longer be cast as the male lead.

Local CBS affiliate KXII 12 News, which first reported the story, noted in their continuing coverage on Thursday, the new Sherman ISD rule allowing theater students to only be cast in roles matching their birth gender has cost about 20 students their part in the high school’s upcoming musical Oklahoma!

KXII reported that as parents of the affected theatre kids are desperately looking for answers for their children, it came to light that a Sherman ISD Board of Trustees member has a history of protesting local LGBTQ events. Anna Wylie, a member of the tea-party era Texoma Patriots who was elected in 2019, protested outside of an off-campus LGTBQ prom hosted by Grayson Pride in May.

Some parents also suspect interference by Sherman ISD Board of Trustees President Brad Morgan.

Matthew Krov, a Sherman theater parent, told News 12 he was there and witnessed Wylie in action as she held a sign that read “What are you confused about?”.

“There were multiple students from Sherman at this event that she was protesting, and a part of that yelling and sign holding,” Krov said. News 12 contacted Wylie but she declined to comment.

Fort Worth Star-Telegram journalist Bud Kennedy noted in his commentary published on Friday November 10:

Sherman ISD officials canceled the high school musical “Oklahoma!” because girls were playing male roles, and maybe mainly because transgender actor Max Hightower was in a starring role as slick salesman Ali Hakim in the 1943 Rodgers and Hammerstein Broadway hit.

Several girls had been cast to play boys. One girl told Sherman TV station KXII/Channel 12 that the reason was simple: “There’s not enough boys for the show.”

Sherman officials also apparently decided the beloved musical was more prurient than prairie. In a statement, the district said the play must be recast by gender as called for in the script, and also that “Oklahoma!” is inappropriate for high school drama classes due to mature adult themes, profane language, and sexual content.

In its statement on November 6, the Sherman ISD made it clear that the policy was applied to this specific student production:

[…] “There is no policy on how students are assigned to roles. As it relates to this particular production, the sex of the role as identified in the script will be used when casting. Because the nature and subject matter of productions vary, the District is not inclined to apply this criteria to all future productions.

The District will postpone the performances from December 8-10, 2023, to a later date. The District anticipates the public performances will be scheduled for some time after January 15, 2024. Between now and then, we will be working diligently to produce Oklahoma! as a musical that is appropriate for the high school stage.”

News 12 and the Blade have reached out to Sherman ISD for more information on what led up to the decision. The district responded with a promise to release an additional statement in the coming days.

Related:

Texas trans student loses lead theater role over gender policy

SHERMAN, Texas – A high school in this medium sized city about 75 miles North of Dallas, abruptly jettisoned a transgender theater male student out of the lead role of a planned student-run production of the classic Rodgers and Hammerstein musical ‘Oklahoma!’

Speaking with local CBS affiliate KXII 12 News, Phillip Hightower said that his son, senior Max Hightower, landed the lead male role in ‘Oklahoma!’ about two weeks ago and was overjoyed. According to Hightower, his son has participated in the high school’s Bearcat Theater since he was a freshman.

“He puts in the effort. I mean, I can’t tell you how many times they’ve been singing in the bedroom,” said Hightower. “It was a beautiful day,” Hightower said.

According to News 12 that all changed about a week ago when the Sherman High School principal called him to tell him about a new policy.

“Actors and actresses could only play a role that was the same gender they were assigned at birth,” Hightower said, detailing his conversation with the principal. Because Max identifies as a transgender male, he could no longer be cast as the male lead. “I was devastated,” Hightower told the station.

Max Hightower and his family were devastated when they found out the lead role he had been cast for would be taken away. https://t.co/hXEfcbWkYQ

— KXII News 12 (@KXIITV) November 6, 2023

Hightower said his son previously played historically female supporting characters in Sherman theater shows. “But they allowed Max to dress up as a male,” he said.

Which Hightower noted that traditionally has been a part of theater since its earliest history.

“All kinds of actors have played all kinds of parts,” Hightower said, “I mean, I grew up watching Mrs. Doubtfire.” Hightower thought losing the role would crush his son. “I expected him to be crying, but no, Max is a fighter,” Hightower said.

On Monday, November 6, the Sherman Independent School District released a statement:

“We understand that questions have arisen regarding the current production of Oklahoma! by students at Sherman High School, including how students are assigned to roles.

The public performance of a high school musical requires the consideration and balance of a variety of factors given the fact that it is a production by students, the majority of whom are underage. It was brought to the District’s attention that the current production contained mature adult themes, profane language, and sexual content. Unfortunately, all aspects of the production need to be reviewed, including content, stage production/props, and casting to ensure that the production is appropriate for the high school stage.

There is no policy on how students are assigned to roles. As it relates to this particular production, the sex of the role as identified in the script will be used when casting. Because the nature and subject matter of productions vary, the District is not inclined to apply this criteria to all future productions.

The District will postpone the performances from December 8-10, 2023, to a later date. The District anticipates the public performances will be scheduled for some time after January 15, 2024. Between now and then, we will be working diligently to produce Oklahoma! as a musical that is appropriate for the high school stage.

We recognize and greatly appreciate the hard work and commitment all team members have exhibited to support the production to date. We thank the entire community for its patience and understanding during this time.”

News 12 reported that the Hightower family are now determined to get Max back into the role and keep the high school’s theater a safe space for all students, especially LGBTQ+ students.

“I want every kid to be recognized and noticed and allowed to be themselves,” Hightower said.

AUSTIN, Texas — Starting Friday, transgender children in Texas will no longer have access to the essential, appropriate and life-saving medication that helps them transition and overcome gender dysphoria. The all-Republican state supreme court refused to stop Senate Bill 14 from taking effect, denying an emergency request for temporary relief. 

“Transgender youth and their families are forced to confront the start of the school year fearful of what awaits them,” said a group of advocacy organizations in a joint statement. They filed suit in July to stop SB 14. 

The new law not only prohibits medication and surgery related to gender transition for all patients under 18, it also prohibits public funds from being used to pay for a minor’s gender-affirming care, and requires the Texas Medical Board to revoke the license of any doctors who provide it. 

Gender-affirming operations for minors are already rare, as the Associated Press has reported; Nationally-recognized medical guidelines recommend patients be at least 15 years old for such surgeries, and only then in special circumstances. Genital reassignment surgery is generally limited to patients 18 and older, according to guidelines for the medical care of transgender patients developed by the Endocrine Society and the World Professional Association for Transgender Health, or WPATH. 

Last week, a Travis County District Court ruled the law violates the rights of transgender children and their families and granted a temporary injunction. That blocked implementation of the ban, but the Texas Attorney General immediately appealed to the Texas Supreme Court, and the justices lifted the injunction Thursday without any written explanation.

“Today’s cruel ruling places Texas’ transgender youth, and the families and medical professionals who love and care for them, directly in harm’s way,” said the advocates, which include Lambda Legal, the American Civil Liberties Union, the ACLU of Texas, Transgender Law Center, and two law firms. “The district court heard two days of testimony, weighed the evidence, and made a reasoned and thoughtful determination that the ban likely violated the Texas Constitution, and thus should be delayed while the full case plays out in court. Inexplicably, the Texas Supreme Court disagreed, and transgender youth and their families are forced to confront the start of the school year fearful of what awaits them.

When the law takes effect Friday, Texas will be the most populous state with healthcare restrictions on transgender children, the Associated Press reported. 

Of the 496 anti-LGBTQ bills considered by lawmakers in 45 states in 2023, 130 of them focused on restricting healthcare, like SB 14, according to the ACLU.
But unlike Texas, federal courts have blocked bans on gender-affirming care for transgender youth in Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky and Tennessee, according to the Southern Poverty Law Center. In June, a federal court struck down Arkansas’ ban on the grounds it violated the Equal Protection clause, Due Process clauses, and the First Amendment of the United States Constitution.

By William Melhado | AUSTIN, Texas – A Texas law banning transgender youth from accessing puberty blockers and hormone therapy will go into effect next week after the state attorney general’s office filed to block a judge’s temporary injunction against Senate Bill 14.

In her decision Friday, state district court Judge Maria Cantú Hexsel wrote that SB 14 “interferes with Texas families’ private decisions and strips Texas parents … of the right to seek, direct, and provide medical care for their children.”

In response, the attorney general’s office filed an appeal with the Texas Supreme Court, a move that automatically pauses Cantú Hexsel’s injunction and will allow the law to go into effect Sept. 1. The attorney general’s office said such medical treatments are “unproven” and “pushed by some activists in the medical and psychiatric professions” in a statement announcing the appeal Friday evening.

Texas lawmakers passed SB 14 during this year’s regular legislative session, in addition to several other pieces of legislation affecting the lives of LGBTQ+ people.

Texas families and doctors sued the state in July with the hope of blocking the law. They argued SB 14 violates the Texas Constitution because it strips parents’ rights to make decisions about their child’s health care and discriminates against transgender youth by prohibiting access to this population specifically.

Cantú Hexsel’s injunction would have blocked the state attorney general’s office, the Texas Medical Board and the Texas Health and Human Services Commission from enforcing the law. She wrote that transgender youth and their families would “suffer probable, imminent, and irreparable injury” if SB 14 went into effect while the legal battle ensues. A trial is set to begin May 6.

The judge indicated the lawsuit would likely succeed. Agreeing with the plaintiffs, she said that SB 14 was unconstitutional because it violated parents’ rights to make decisions about their children, infringed on doctor’s freedom to practice medicine and discriminated against transgender youth by withholding access to health care.

“This Act was passed because of, and not in spite of, its impact on transgender adolescents, depriving them of necessary, safe, and effective medical treatment,” the judge wrote.

In a hearing last week, medical experts testified to the efficacy of transition-related care in alleviating mental health issues associated with gender dysphoria — a medical term for the distress someone experiences when their gender identity doesn’t match their body.

Defense attorneys called doctors and other experts to discredit the existing evidence that supports the use of puberty blockers and hormone treatments on transgender youth diagnosed with gender dysphoria. They argued the risks of these drugs — and transition-related surgeries, which are rarely performed on children — outweigh the benefits.

In the larger medical community, there is less debate over the use of these treatments. Leading medical associations like the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American Medical Association support the use of transition-related care for people under 18.

Alex Sheldon, executive director of GLMA, an association of LGBTQ+ health professionals that is one of the plaintiffs, hailed Cantú Hexsel’s ruling before the attorney general’s office appealed it.

“This ruling stands as a testament to the unwavering dedication of Texas families and the medical expertise of GLMA‘s health professional members, who with each testimony have clearly demonstrated that gender-affirming care is evidence-based, life-saving care,” Sheldon said in a statement Friday. “Although this was just one battle of many, we remain steadfast in our commitment to fight for the rights of trans youth and health care providers offering gender-affirming care in Texas and throughout the nation.”

Similar to Texas’ law, restrictions to transition-related care in other states have faced legal challenges in recent months.

In June, a federal judge ruled that Arkansas’ ban on gender-affirming care for minors is unconstitutional because it violates the due-process and equal-protection rights of transgender children and their families. Federal judges in Florida, Kentucky and Tennessee have also blocked those states’ laws from going into effect. An appeals court intervened to allow Tennessee to implement its ban, and the Kentucky federal judge lifted the injunction he issued, allowing the law to go into effect.

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The preceding article was previously published by The Texas Tribune and is republished by permission.

Editor’s note: The full program is now LIVE for the 2023 Texas Tribune Festival, happening Sept. 21-23 in Austin. Explore the program featuring more than 100 unforgettable conversations coming to TribFest. Panel topics include the biggest 2024 races and what’s ahead, how big cities in Texas and around the country are changing, the integrity of upcoming elections and so much more. See the full program.

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Quality journalism doesn’t come free

Perhaps it goes without saying — but producing quality journalism isn’t cheap. At a time when newsroom resources and revenue across the country are declining, The Texas Tribune remains committed to sustaining our mission: creating a more engaged and informed Texas with every story we cover, every event we convene and every newsletter we send. As a nonprofit newsroom, we rely on members to help keep our stories free and our events open to the public. Do you value our journalism? Show us with your support.

Donation Link Here: (Link)

Related:

Judge temporarily blocks Texas’ ban on trans youth healthcare

By William Melhado | AUSTIN, Texas – A state district court judge has temporarily blocked a Texas law banning transgender youth from accessing puberty blockers and hormone therapy.

In her injunction Friday, Judge Maria Cantú Hexsel wrote that Senate Bill 14 “interferes with Texas families’ private decisions and strips Texas parents … of the right to seek, direct, and provide medical care for their children.”

Texas lawmakers passed SB 14 during this year’s regular legislative session, in addition to several other pieces of legislation affecting the lives of LGBTQ+ people.

Texas families and doctors sued the state in July with the hope of blocking the law. They argued SB 14 violates the Texas Constitution because it strips parents’ rights to make decisions about their child’s health care and discriminates against transgender youth by prohibiting access to this population specifically.

The state could appeal the state district court’s decision in an effort to let the law go into effect Sept. 1.

LA Blade Editor’s Note:

Attorneys from the American Civil Liberties Union of Texas, ACLU, Transgender Legal Center, Lambda Legal, and the law firms Scott Douglass & McConnico LLP and Arnold & Porter Kaye Scholer, LLP argued for the injunction in court last Tuesday and Wednesday.

 “We are elated by the court’s ruling, which strikes a blow against this outrageous attempt to ban necessary and often life-saving medical care for Texas’ transgender youth, cut off access to medical care for adolescents already receiving treatment, and require the state to revoke the medical licenses of physicians providing the best standard of care to their transgender patients,” said Paul D. Castillo (he/him), Senior Counsel, Lambda Legal. “We will continue to fight for our clients and for all transgender youth in Texas until this dangerous law is permanently set aside.”   

“The court decision is a critical victory for transgender youth and their families, supporters, and health providers against this blatantly unconstitutional law,” said Brian Klosterboer (he/him), attorney at the ACLU of Texas. “As Texans, we believe that each one of us should have the freedom to be ourselves and have access to best-practice medical care that we need for ourselves and our children without facing cruel discrimination or bullying designed as policy. Trans Texans shouldn’t have to go to court to defend their basic rights, and we will keep advocating for our clients every step of the way.”

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The preceding article was previously published by The Texas Tribune and is republished by permission.

Editor’s note: The full program is now LIVE for the 2023 Texas Tribune Festival, happening Sept. 21-23 in Austin. Explore the program featuring more than 100 unforgettable conversations coming to TribFest. Panel topics include the biggest 2024 races and what’s ahead, how big cities in Texas and around the country are changing, the integrity of upcoming elections and so much more. See the full program.

**********************

Quality journalism doesn’t come free

Perhaps it goes without saying — but producing quality journalism isn’t cheap. At a time when newsroom resources and revenue across the country are declining, The Texas Tribune remains committed to sustaining our mission: creating a more engaged and informed Texas with every story we cover, every event we convene and every newsletter we send. As a nonprofit newsroom, we rely on members to help keep our stories free and our events open to the public. Do you value our journalism? Show us with your support.

Donation Link Here: (Link)

AUSTIN, Texas – After the final bell rang on Tuesday signaling the end of the school day and as students at McCallum High School headed out to the waiting busses, they were confronted by a small group of approximately eight street preachers holding anti-LGBTQ and anti-abortion signs shouting slogans and anti-LGBTQ+ hate speech.

An Austin Independent School District spokesperson confirmed that the protestors showed up around 4 p.m. as students were being dismissed from class.

“The protesters were on the sidewalk but were blocking the buses, so they were asked to move,” the spokesperson for the Austin ISD said. “Austin ISD Police officers were on-site to ensure everyone’s safety, and the protesters left after about an hour.”

McCallum Principal Andy Baxa in a letter to parents wrote:

Dear McCallum High School community, I regret having to share with you that about eight demonstrators with anti-LGBTQ and antiabortion signs arrived at our school today during dismissal. The demonstrators were on the sidewalk and were blocking the buses.

We immediately contacted our campus police who required the protestors to move out of the way of the buses and onto the public sidewalk.

Austin ISD Police officers remained on-site to ensure everyone’s safety, and the demonstrators left after about an hour.

If your child was exposed to this hateful demonstration and needs support, please contact our counseling team at 512-414-2519.

I want to emphasize that these hateful messages are in direct opposition to our values here at McCallum and to the values of our district. Austin ISD is committed to creating a safe, supportive, and inclusive environment for all students and staff.

Austin’s independent newspaper, The Austin Chronicle reported: Austin ISD police were also there to stand between the harassers and the students, but some parents still expressed alarm. “Very upsetting, with everyone wondering what to do,” one parent told the Chronicle. “Should we respond? Should we ignore? Just very unsettling that something like this could happen so close to a school.”

Parents were also concerned about what seemed to be vague threats. One of the men yelled that Jesus will “judge the living and the dead. That’s what he’s gonna do. I’ve already seen some transvestite out here boo-hooing and crying. … God’s people will never comply with the Devil’s lies.”

Related:

Editor’s Note: Caution the following YouTube video was uploaded by the anti-LGBTQ+ group protesting at McCallum High School.

By Monique Welch | HOUSTON – Jamie Gonzales, a former program coordinator at the University of Houston’s LGBTQ Resource Center, hasn’t slept well ever since she heard that the center will be disbanded in accordance with Senate Bill 17, a law banning diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives at public higher education institutions.

Although she knew the closure was coming after the bill passed in April in the Texas Senate, she still found herself emotionally ill-prepared to grapple with the reality: an end of an era for a place that served as a beacon of acceptance, safety and support for thousands of queer “Coogs,” as UH students often call themselves.

“There were a lot of special moments held in that space,” said Gonzales while crying during a phone interview this week.

SB 17, which takes effect on Jan. 1, will require that all state-funded colleges and universities close their DEI offices. It also bans any mandatory diversity training.

Gov. Greg Abbott signed the bill into law June 14. Houston-area Sen. Brandon Creighton, R-Conroe, who filed the bill, said in a June statement that it would promote a “merit-based approach” and “[w]hat sets SB 17 apart from other proposals is that the legislation delivers strong enforcement with mandates to return Texas colleges and universities to their core mission — educate and innovate.”

He said in the statement that the law does not affect student-led organizations. But UH’s LGBTQ Resource Center was a university-run program and falls under the law.

Surprise announcement

Before Thursday, the effect of the law at UH was unclear to many students, alumni and faculty. But all that changed last week when students noticed a flyer taped to the door of the center that read, “In Accordance with Texas Senate Bill 17, the LGBTQ Resource Center has been disbanded.”

University officials later said the flyer was posted “prematurely” and “without the full consultation and communication process.” But the unauthorized announcement went viral on social media and gave many a harsh glimpse into a reality they weren’t yet ready to accept.

Currently, both the LGBTQ Resource Center and the Center for Diversity and Inclusion — a university-run multicultural center — are still operating. But a UH spokesperson confirmed in a statement that there will be changes to university policies to comply with SB 17. The statement said those changes will impact both centers and “require a reconfiguration of departments, employees and their scope of work.” The university plans to present a full implementation plan to the Board of Regents later this month.

Although an official plan is coming, the university’s initial lack of communication left some students, faculty and alumni in anguish, concerned about the future and unsure of what to do next.

The center offered a safe space for many students to be their authentic selves, navigate their identity with peer mentors, and seek training in allyship, sensitive language and gender-neutral pronouns. Besides providing a physical space, the LGBTQ center also organized activities such as a student trip to Washington, D.C., in 2018 to speak to legislators. Gonzales said that upon their return, the impact was evident.

“I remember there was one student out of the group, and when we came back, I remember her changing her major to government. That next year, she ran for [Student Government Association] president and won. That hadn’t even been on her radar before,” she said.

A center decades in the making

Maria Gonzalez is a UH associate professor of English who was among the core group of faculty, staff and students who helped establish the LGBTQ resource center. The group, formerly known as the “Cougar Allies,” made incremental strides toward developing a more inclusive university, she said, such as convincing the university in the years before same-sex marriage was legalized to use the word “guest” rather than “spouse” in communications. But it still took more than a decade of activism before the center officially opened in 2010, she said.

“It was one of those progressive things that took a while to get done,” Gonzalez said. “This is a conservative state, still is. Adding gender identity, gender expression, creating all these things was seen as provocative, and most universities weren’t particularly interested in leading the charge for such things.”

The UH Student Government Association president, Benjamin Rizk, said that regardless of what the law says, Texas legislators can’t change culture or people’s beliefs.

“Although in name UH can’t be exactly diverse and inclusive, it can still be a place of well-being and community,” he said. “You can’t change what people think. It doesn’t really matter what the hell you put on paper.”

Gonzalez said that although it’s infuriating to regress on the progress made, the fight isn’t over. Her mission now is to put the onus on faculty and staff to find ways to support the LGBTQ community.

“I’m telling people to double down,” she said. “All the programs on this campus have to realize that they can’t depend on the LGBT resource center to do anything anymore because it doesn’t exist. So it’s their job to take care of their LGBT students now. Now it’s everybody’s job.”

Disclosure: University of Houston has been a financial supporter of The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that is funded in part by donations from members, foundations and corporate sponsors. Financial supporters play no role in the Tribune’s journalism. Find a complete list of them here.

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Editor’s note: The full program is now LIVE for the 2023 Texas Tribune Festival, happening Sept. 21-23 in Austin. Explore the program featuring more than 100 unforgettable conversations coming to TribFest. Panel topics include the biggest 2024 races and what’s ahead, how big cities in Texas and around the country are changing, the integrity of upcoming elections and so much more. See the full program.

The preceding article was previously published by The Texas Tribune and is republished by permission.

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