118 HRES 557 IH: Honoring the struggle, sacrifice, and contributions of the LGBTQ+ community and fight for equality in Texas.
U.S. House of Representatives
2023-06-27
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IV
118th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. RES. 557
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
June 27, 2023
Ms. Crockett (for herself, Mr. Allred, Mr. Casar, Mr. Castro of Texas, Mr. Doggett, Ms. Escobar, Mrs. Fletcher, Mr. Green of Texas, and Ms. Jackson Lee) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary
RESOLUTION
Honoring the struggle, sacrifice, and contributions of the LGBTQ+ community and fight for equality in Texas.
Whereas LGBTQI+ individuals in Texas have historically encountered bigotry, discrimination, hatred, and violence, but have struggled tirelessly to obtain equal rights and protection of the law;
Whereas, the Circle of Friends was Dallas’ first gay organization, established in 1965;
Whereas, in 1972, an LGBTQI+ couple was denied the right to marry by the State, which was not illegal, but was uncommon and deemed inappropriate;
Whereas, on June 24, 1972, Dallas, Texas, held its first unofficial gay pride parade;
Whereas Dallas hosts the world’s largest LGBTQI+ seated dinner fundraiser;
Whereas the first Rainbow LULAC chapter was formed in Dallas;
Whereas Dallas has more Rainbow Crosswalks than any city in America;
Whereas Dallas is the first-and-only city in America to have an official “pride” version of the City flag;
Whereas the landmark legal case, England v. City of Dallas, opened municipal employment, statewide, for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender citizens;
Whereas the landmark legal case, Baker vs. Wade, established the unconstitutionality of Section 21.06 of the Texas Penal Code;
Whereas, in 1975, the oldest southern LGBT rights organization, the Houston LGBT Political Caucus, was founded;
Whereas, in 1975, the Dallas Gay Political Caucus was the first major gay and lesbian political organization in Dallas to counter the anti-gay sentiment that was building throughout the country at the time;
Whereas, in 1976, Austin declared Gay Pride Celebration Week in the month of June;
Whereas, in 1978, Reverend James Harris ran as the first openly gay candidate for Dallas City Council;
Whereas, in 1979, the Houston Gay Pride Parade was first held in the community area of Neartown Houston;
Whereas, in 1980, the first official gay pride parade took place in June in Dallas;
Whereas the earliest AIDS resource center in Dallas was the Oak Lawn Counseling Center, founded in 1981 by Harold P. (Howie) Daire and Candy Marcum, which provided educational and patient support service;
Whereas, in 1982, the BlackTie Dinner held the first of what would become many dinners to contribute to one of the largest sources of funding for many North Texas LGBTQI+ organizations;
Whereas, in 1984, the Supreme Court decision in Gay Student Services v. Texas A&M University upheld the requirement for public universities to uphold the First Amendment rights of students, which require public universities to recognize student organizations aimed at gay students;
Whereas the City of Dallas has comprehensive ordinances offering lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender residents protection from discrimination in employment, housing, and other public areas;
Whereas, since its founding in 1984, Dallas Design Industries Foundation Fighting AIDS has grown from a grassroots organization to a national foundation with chapters across the country;
Whereas, in 1985, the Gay Alliance also provided support and representation for those with HIV/AIDS, and created the AIDS Resource Center, later renamed Resource Center;
Whereas the Dallas Buyer’s Club was created by Dallas electrician Ron Woodroof in 1988 to distribute drugs not then available to AIDS and HIV patients to combat the disease;
Whereas, in 1993, Mr. Craig McDaniel was the first openly gay man to be elected to the Dallas City Council, working to support the rights of the LGBTQI+ community through legislation;
Whereas 1996 marked the first year of Dallas Black Pride, which has grown to be the largest celebration of its kind in Texas and is continually held every year in the fall;
Whereas, in 1997, the Texas legislature prohibited the issuance of marriage licenses to same-sex couples;
Whereas the 1999 Texas State Supreme Court annulled transsexual marriages in the State under Littleton v. Prange;
Whereas, in 2001, Texas Governor Rick Perry signed the James Byrd, Jr., Hate Crimes Act, which criminalized violent or coercive action against other Texas residents on various immutable traits, including sexual orientation;
Whereas the City of El Paso celebrated its first gay pride parade on June 2, 2001;
Whereas, in 2002, the Dallas City Council passed an anti-discrimination ordinance protecting LGBTQI+ persons;
Whereas the 2003 Supreme Court landmark decision Lawrence v. Texas nullified all remaining sodomy laws in the United States, which effectively preempted State law;
Whereas Texas Penal Code 21.06 remains codified, though without legal effect;
Whereas, in 2010, Ms. Annise Danette Parker became the first openly gay mayor in Texas elected to the city of Houston;
Whereas the Texas Latino Gay Pride event began in 2014 and is held annually every early October in the Oaklawn district, the first event of its kind in Texas;
Whereas, in 2012, after President Obama’s endorsement of same-sex marriage, the Texas Democratic Party became the first southern Democratic State party to include support of same-sex marriage in its platform;
Whereas, in 2013, El Paso County adopted its Plus One Policy, allowing for LGBTQ County employees to extend certain employee benefits to their domestic partners;
Whereas, in 2015, same-sex marriage was legalized throughout the United States;
Whereas, in Texas, specifically, 2,500 same-sex marriage licenses were issued in 2015;
Whereas, on June 26, 2015, Mr. Jack Evans and Mr. George Harris became the first legally recognized gay marriage in Dallas County;
Whereas, between 2017 and 2021, nine trans women were brutally murdered in Dallas;
Whereas the transgender community in Texas continues to face additional barriers compared to others on issues of health care and housing;
Whereas, in 2019, the Texas legislature formed its first LGBT Caucus with five LGBTQI+ women, and was chaired by Texas State Representative Mary Gonzalez;
Whereas, in 2022, several Texas cities, including Leander, Round Rock, Pflugerville and Lockhart, held their first public LGBTQI+ Pride events in the state’s history;
Whereas Texas cities such as Franklin, Houston, Forth Worth, Dallas, San Antonio, Galveston, San Marcos, McAllen, El Paso, Lubbock, Waco, Corpus Christi, Abilene, Laredo, Tyler, and countless others all have scheduled LGBTQI+ Pride celebrations in 2023;
Whereas Texas is home to roughly 1.8 million individuals identifying as members of the LGBTQI+ community;
Whereas Texas State Code V.T.C.A. 85.007 continues to discriminate against the LGBTQI+ community requiring that “materials in the education programs intended for persons younger than 18 years of age must . . . state that homosexual conduct is not an acceptable lifestyle and is a criminal offense under Section 21.06, Penal Code”;
Whereas the Texas Constitution discriminates against the LGBTQI community, recognizing that “marriage in this state shall consist only of the union of one man and one woman”;
Whereas there are currently no Texas State laws to protect against LGBTQIA+ discrimination in family services, housing, banking, public accommodations, health care, and education; and
Whereas public opinion polls find that a majority of Americans support same-sex marriage and support implementing anti-discrimination laws based on sexual orientation: Now, therefore, be it
That the House of Representatives—
(1)
honors the invaluable contributions and sacrifices of LGBTQI+ individuals and its community in Texas;
(2)
recognizes the historical significance that Texas has played in the LGBTQI+ movement; and
(3)
recognizes that local and State governments and the Federal Government must continue their work to honor all members of the LGBTQI+ community in Texas and the United States and ensure that these citizens receive all the rights, privileges, and protections guaranteed under the Constitution.