Excerpts from The Texas Tribune’s The Brief on Texas Politics and Policy
THE EYES OF LGBTQ TEXANS ARE UPON THE TEXAS HOUSE
By William Melhado and Alex NguyenWith more than six weeks left in the legislative session, the Texas Senate has wasted little time passing every bill focused on LGBTQ Texans that Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick prioritized.
They’ve advanced legislation that would:
Restrict schools’ role in discussing the existence of LGBTQ people
Block access to gender-affirming treatments for transgender kidsRestrict transgender athletes’ participation in college sports
Defund public libraries that let drag queens read to children
The bills were expected to sail through the conservative Senate, but they now face some uncertainty as they head to the Texas House. Plus, the political stakes are raised for House Speaker Dade Phelan, who in 2019 commented he was “done talking about bashing on the gay community. It’s completely unacceptable.”
“It’s feeling more and more like we’re just in a pressure cooker and the temperature keeps rising,” said Kay, the parent of a trans child who asked that her last name not be used out of fear of being investigated for child abuse.
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