{"id":54976,"date":"2017-07-25T20:00:30","date_gmt":"2017-07-26T00:00:30","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.gayfriendschat.com\/socialblog\/texas-senate-disregards-the-safety-of-transgender-texans-and-well-being-of-state-economy-by-approving-sb-3\/"},"modified":"2017-07-25T20:00:30","modified_gmt":"2017-07-26T00:00:30","slug":"texas-senate-disregards-the-safety-of-transgender-texans-and-well-being-of-state-economy-by-approving-sb-3","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.gayfriendschat.com\/socialblog\/texas-senate-disregards-the-safety-of-transgender-texans-and-well-being-of-state-economy-by-approving-sb-3\/","title":{"rendered":"Texas Senate disregards the safety of transgender Texans and well-being of state economy by approving SB 3"},"content":{"rendered":"

Texas Senate disregards the safety of transgender Texans and well-being of state economy by approving SB 3<\/b><\/p>\n

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NEW YORK – <\/strong>GLAAD, the world\u2019s largest LGBTQ media advocacy organization, today denounced the Texas Senate for passing Senate Bill 3, a bill that would bar transgender and\u00a0gender non-conforming Texans from access to restrooms and students from participating in athletics in accordance with their gender identity. SB 3 also prevents political subdivisions from the adoption or enforcement of pro-LGBTQ discrimination protections already in federal or state law. The bill is the first legislative step in Gov. Greg Abbott\u2019s push for a so-called \u201cbathroom bill\u201d as part of his \u201cspecial discrimination session\u201d this summer, which has already started harming Texas\u2019 economy<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cBy approving SB 3, the Texas Senate has displayed outright negligence for the safety and will of their own constituents,\u201d said Sarah Kate Ellis, President and CEO of GLAAD.<\/strong> \u201cThis law is designed to make it nearly impossible for transgender and gender non-conforming people to go about their daily lives like other Texans and opens transgender students to discrimination, bullying, and violence. Encouraging discrimination against fellow Texans serves no one, and with Texas\u2019 largest employers opposed to SB 3, it is sure to cause a devastating economic panic.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAs a proud member of the intersex community, 2% of the global population that does not fit in a binary ‘male<\/a>’\u00a0or ‘female<\/a>’\u00a0box that can be stamped on the door of a bathroom, I am deeply concerned about SB 3 and the 600,000 members of my LGBTQIA+ community that would be put into immediate danger were it to pass into law,\u201d said Alicia Weigel, a Texan and <\/strong>Director of Communications at <\/strong>Deeds Not Words<\/strong><\/a> \u2013 the gender equality nonprofit established by former Texas Senator Wendy Davis. Weigel <\/strong>testified against SB 3 last Friday<\/strong><\/a>.<\/strong> \u201cThis bill dredges up past relics of bathroom discrimination, using misconceptions and roundly discredited scare-tactics in order to justify its harmful outcomes.\u201d<\/p>\n

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[GLAAD VIDEO: What Texas\u2019 Special Session Means For LGBTQ Texans<\/em><\/a>]<\/p>\n

Already this year, anti-LGBTQ activists, including Gov. Abbott, have advocated for legislation that openly targets and discriminates against transgender Texas, barring them from public accommodations in accordance with their gender identity. Not only has a so-called \u201cbathroom bill\u201d been\u00a0opposed<\/a>\u00a0by the majority of Texans and\u00a0big businesses across the country<\/a>, but it could drain about $3 billion from the state\u2019s economy while also putting the safety of transgender Texans in jeopardy. Even Texas House Speaker Joe Straus, a Republican, voiced his opposition to the anti-trans<\/a> bills \u2013 saying he was \u201cdisgusted by all this<\/a>\u201d and did not \u201ca suicide of a single Texan on [his] hands<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\n

Since the start of this year\u2019s session, GLAAD has been on the ground fighting the onslaught of anti-LGBTQ legislation in Texas. This spring, GLAAD coordinated with Equality Texas and Texas Freedom Network to hold numerous \u201cStudents Against Hate<\/a>\u201d rallies on college campuses across the state where Texans came together to share their voice and fight back against the anti-LGBTQ bills being perused at the statehouse. Further, GLAAD teamed up with Equality Texas, The Ally Coalition, and more than 160 leading artists, entertainers, and influencers to release an\u00a0open letter opposing anti-LGBTQ bills<\/a>, including the so-called \u201cbathroom bill,\u201d that threatened to harm LGBTQ Texas. The letter demonstrated widespread disapproval for dangerous legislation.<\/p>\n

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July 25, 2017<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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