Tag Archives: transgender rights

By the way, Commissioners Court updated the county’s nondiscrimination and anti-harassment policies

Posted on June 27, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Nice. The Commissioners Court voted 3-2 along party lines to [add sexual orientation and gender identity to the county’s nondiscrimination and anti-harassment policies]. County Judge Lina Hidalgo, along with Commissioners Rodney Ellis and Adrian Garcia — all Democrats — voted … Continue reading →

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A starter agenda for when we have a Democratic state government

Posted on June 16, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

I’ve been pondering the recent legislative session, which as we have discussed wasn’t great but also wasn’t nearly as bad as some other recent sessions have been. The qualification for all this is that the key defining factor for our … Continue reading →

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Looks like Boykins is in for Mayor

Posted on June 6, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

This had been rumored for some time. Houston City Councilman Dwight Boykins has filed paperwork indicating he will run for mayor, setting up a clash with incumbent Sylvester Turner and at least two other major candidates. Boykins filed a report … Continue reading →

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Undead “religious liberty” bill passes House

Posted on May 21, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

This is why people caution that no bill is truly dead at the Lege until sine die. Over the tearful opposition of the Legislature’s first-ever LGBTQ Caucus and several failed attempts at a procedural block, the Texas House passed a … Continue reading →

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Sometimes, bad bills do die

Posted on May 21, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

The calendar giveth, and the calendar taketh away. One of the the biggest priorities for Texas Republicans this session appears to be on the verge of legislative death. A series of bills that would broadly prohibit local governments from regulating … Continue reading →

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Undead “religious liberty” bill passes Senate

Posted on May 16, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Ladies and gentlemen, I give you Scott Braddock: On a vote of 19 to 12, the Texas Senate votes to advance the Holy Chicken Nugget bill to third reading #TxLege — Scott Braddock (@scottbraddock) 6:32 PM – 15 May 2019 … Continue reading →

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“What is dead may never die”, bad bills edition

Posted on May 14, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

That nasty anti-LGBT bill that was killed in the House has been revived in the Senate. After LGBTQ lawmakers in the Texas House killed a religious liberty bill they feared could be dangerous to their community, the Texas Senate has … Continue reading →

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Score one for the Texas House LGBTQ Caucus

Posted on May 10, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Nice. Hours before a key deadline, Rep. Julie Johnson used a legislative maneuver known as a “point of order” to bump [a bill that LGBT rights advocates said would have perpetuated anti-gay discrimination] from the debate calendar. It’s now effectively … Continue reading →

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One anti-worker bill made slightly less bad

Posted on May 3, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

It’s still a bad bill, just not maximally bad. Republicans’ legislative efforts to ban cities from mandating benefits for employers’ workers took another twist late Wednesday night after a Texas House committee added protections for LGBTQ workers that the state … Continue reading →

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Three reasons our State Senate still sucks

Posted on April 3, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

One: The Texas Senate approved in a preliminary vote Monday its first major anti-abortion bill of the session — a measure that would prohibit state and local governments from partnering with agencies that perform abortions, even if they contract for … Continue reading →

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Getting the band back together

Posted on March 29, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

I feel like they were a little slow getting off the bench, but the business lobby is back warning about anti-equality bills lurking in the Lege, mostly but not entirely in the Senate. In the spring of 2015, 80 companies … Continue reading →

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World’s worst pastors drop Austin equal rights lawsuit

Posted on March 26, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Good. A conservative Christian organization has dropped a federal lawsuitthat sought to overturn an Austin anti-discrimination ordinance that offers employment protection based on sexual orientation and gender identity. Dave Welch, head of the Houston-based U.S. Pastor Council, said the decision was … Continue reading →

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Some business opposition to SB15

Posted on March 22, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

It’s a start. A coalition of business groups and convention and tourism leaders, which includes ASAE, is expressing concern that a pending bill in the Texas Legislature could weaken protections for the state’s LGBTQ workers. ASAE is joining a coalition … Continue reading →

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Is the anti-sick leave bill also anti-equality?

Posted on March 13, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Could be. Whose word do you take for it? What started as seemingly simple state legislation hailed as good for Texas businesses is drawing skepticism from legal experts and outrage from advocates worried it would strike employment protections and benefits … Continue reading →

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The state of equality 2019

Posted on February 28, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

From Equality Texas: IN 2019, THE STATE OF EQUALITY IS: OUT OF STEP WITH TEXAS VALUES As the 2019 Texas Legislature approaches the mid-point, Equality Texas has surveyed the current state of equality and concluded that urgent legislative action is … Continue reading →

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Equality Texas poll on non-discrimination laws

Posted on February 11, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox: New data released by national polling organization Public Religion Research Institute (PRRI) shows majority support from every major demographic group for laws to protect LGBTQ Texans from discrimination. “This poll shows that Texas has turned the corner, … Continue reading →

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Dan Patrick declares victory on the bathroom bill

Posted on January 10, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Um, okay. The “bathroom bill” won’t be back this session, its loudest champion suggested Wednesday morning. At a Governor’s Mansion press conference on the second day of this year’s legislative session, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick — who last session was … Continue reading →

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Speaker Bonnen

Posted on January 9, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

It’s official. Talking about dreams, honesty and courage, the members of the Texas House unanimously elected Rep. Dennis Bonnen House speaker, making him one of the most powerful Republicans in the state. Members of the House voted 147-0 in favor … Continue reading →

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World’s worst pastors file suit against Austin’s equal rights ordinance

Posted on October 15, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Exactly what you’d expect from these jerks. A Houston-based religious nonprofit behind the so-called bathroom bill is suing the City of Austin over its anti-discrimination hiring ordinance. The U.S. Pastor Council filed suit in a federal district court late last … Continue reading →

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Baptist Ministers Association apologizes for its role in overturning HERO

Posted on September 10, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

I’m very glad to see this. The Baptists Ministers Association of Houston & Vicinity issued a joint statement with the Houston GLBT Political Caucus saying the two groups “are building a relationship that recognizes our common equal rights struggle.” The … Continue reading →

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Federal court ruling says LGBT workers in Texas are protected from discrimination

Posted on April 12, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

This is a big deal. For the first time in Texas, a federal judge said LGBT workers should be protected from employment discrimination based on their gender identity and sexual orientation. Judge Lee Rosenthal, the chief judge in the Houston-based … Continue reading →

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Did Greg Abbott oppose the bathroom bill?

Posted on March 15, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Color me skeptical. Gov. Greg Abbott himself was opposed to the controversial “bathroom bill” that dominated debate at the Texas Capitol for much of 2017, according to a state representative involved in keeping the legislation from passing the Texas House. … Continue reading →

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No, the bathroom bill issue hasn’t gone away

Posted on February 9, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Lisa Falkenberg tries to argue that the bathroom bill issue has faded away this election, but I don’t buy it and I don’t think she does, either. But there’s one hot-button issue that’s been notably absent: the bathroom bill. And … Continue reading →

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Republicans “against” Dan Patrick

Posted on January 18, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

RG Ratcliffe reports on a “loose coalition” of business and education interests who are seeking to clip Dan Patrick’s wings. [FBSID Board President Kristin] Tassin is now running for a seat in the state Senate, and she is just one … Continue reading →

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Record number of LGBT candidates running this year

Posted on January 4, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

OutSmart does the math. A record 40 openly LGBTQ people will run for public office in Texas in 2018, according to an extensive review by OutSmart. That’s roughly twice as many as in any previous election cycle in the state’s … Continue reading →

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TAB wants the Lege to quit it with bathroom bills

Posted on November 16, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

The talk is good. We’ll see about the action. Texas lawmakers spent too much time this year debating bathrooms and immigration, and took their eyes off some matters vital to economic growth, such as phasing out the business-franchise tax and … Continue reading →

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Patrick gets a primary challenger

Posted on November 3, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

The plot thickens. Former Rockwall City Council member Scott Milder will challenge Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick in next year’s Republican primary, Milder announced formally on Thursday. Milder, a public education advocate and resident of North Texas, is the first Republican … Continue reading →

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The lost Harvey tax break

Posted on October 11, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

I have mixed feelings about this. Owners of nearly 300,000 homes damaged by Hurricane Harvey in Texas won’t see any break in their property taxes because of political wrangling this year in the state Legislature over completely unrelated issues – … Continue reading →

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More trans people are running for office

Posted on October 8, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

The best way to gain political power is to win elections, and to win elections you have to run for office. The first time Dani Pellett tackled the bathroom question was years before the issue of transgender access to restrooms would … Continue reading →

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Ruby Polanco

Posted on September 23, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

This happened late last month, and kind of got lost in the Harvey fallout. A year after Ruby Polanco first noticed that the San Antonio Independent School District’s non-discrimination statement for students and employees didn’t mention gender identity, gender expression … Continue reading →

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Judgmental

Posted on September 22, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

The only bench this guy should be allowed on is a park bench. Jeff Mateer, a high-ranking official in Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s office who President Donald Trump has nominated for a federal judgeship, said in speeches in 2015 … Continue reading →

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The trans community is fully engaged now

Posted on September 11, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

One positive thing came out of this months-long anti-transgender legislative assault. For more than a year, [Dan] Patrick pulled out all the stops for the bathroom bills, which would have restricted restroom use based on biological sex and undone local … Continue reading →

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Pastoral malignancy

Posted on August 23, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Know your enemy. A day before the Texas Legislature ended its special session this week, a session that included a high-profile fight over a “bathroom bill” that appeared almost certainly dead, David Welch had a message for Gov. Greg Abbott: … Continue reading →

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The long view of the bathroom bill

Posted on August 20, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

The Chron considers the future of the bathroom bill. Texas’ controversial bathroom bill, championed by Gov. Greg Abbot and Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, may have been declared dead, but some say it could be revived soon enough. “Like Frankenstein, the … Continue reading →

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