Tuesday, July 25, 2017

Texas Is The New ... Hateful ... North Carolina

The surest sign that Texas lawmakers are complete idiots? The fact that they watched what happened when North Carolina passed its own anti-transgender Bathroom Bill and then still thought it worth a shot to pass one of their own.

The good news is that if this turns out anything like North Carolina, the GOP will get their asses kicked come election time.

Yup, deep in the heart of hate, er, Texas, the Senate State Affairs Committee voted 8-1 to approve a bill to restrict transgender rights. Senate Bill 3 would require people to use the bathroom associated with the sex on their birth certificate in all government buildings and schools; it would also ban local governments and schools from passing their own rules to allow transgender people to use the bathroom associated with their actual gender.

Making matters worse, the process for updating one’s birth certificate is difficult in Texas, and it is estimated that most Trans persons in the state do not have an updated birth certificate. But what do lawmakers care? Hate rules!

The bill will now go to the full senate for a vote, where it is expected to easily pass, though it could, could, face opposition in the house, though, where Republican speaker—yes, Republican speaker—Joe Straus has said:
“I don’t want the suicide of a single Texan on my hands.”
The bill’s author, Republican senator ... because, of course ... Lois Kolkhorst, opened the hearing, saying:
“We’re here today because Texas has a tradition of taking care of these issues and not being dictated to by the federal government.”
In case you missed it, by “these issues” she means Civil Rights.

Her Hate Speech was followed by ten hours of testimony followed, most from a coalition of LGBTQ activists, teachers groups, school administrators, and business leaders that oppose the bill. Those people mentioned the high suicide rate for transgender people as a reason to oppose further discrimination which caused Republican ... because, of course ... senator Craig Estes to actually say:

“I’m hearing that it’s somehow our fault that people are committing suicide. Another explanation could be that people are depressed.”
Perhaps people are distressed because they’re being treated as “less than”? Perhaps they’re depressed because they just want to pee. Estes went on to say that he is sure that “it would be depressing to be trying to figure out which gender you are” but that suicide can be caused by lots of things.

Um, asshat? Trans persons are not “trying to figure out which gender” they are; they already know. It’s the bigots and haters in the schools, statehouse, and churches who can’t seem to grasp what being Trans means.

And, as happened in North Carolina, logic will most likely lose out to hate and hysteria and lies, but sanity may be restored with the loss of revenue.

Several business leaders testified that, like North Carolina, Texas’s major cities could lose millions of dollars if this law is passed. Dallas Convention & Visitors Bureau’s CEO Phillip Jones says that city has already lost $40 million because of this bill and could lose another $1 billion in bookings if the bill passes.

And then IBM stepped into the fight, sending an internal memo to employees around the world calling the bill discriminatory, and sending twenty executives to testify in the hearing about the bill.

Other companies coming out against the hate include Apple, Amazon, Google, Cisco, Facebook, and Dallas-based companies like American Airlines, Southwest Airlines, At&T, and Texas Instruments who sent in their own testimony:
“Our companies are competing every day to bring the best and brightest talent to Dallas. To that end, we strongly support diversity and inclusion. This legislation threatens our ability to attract and retain the best talent in Texas, as well as the greatest sporting and cultural attractions in the world.”
But Texas Governor Greg Abbott, a bigoted asshat if there ever was one, refused to listen to reason, and, instead, played the “Protect The Women and Children” card just as Governor McCrory did in North Carolina; and, again, there has never been one single incident, anywhere, where a Trans person has assaulted a woman, or a child, in a restroom; again, they just want to pee.

So, Texas, carry on with the bigotry and intolerance and ignorance, you’ve been doing so for decades; and then cry foul when businesses move away, when conventions change their locations, when sports teams and sporting associations decide to hold their events elsewhere.

Money talks.

And that’s the cost of hate, in dollars, but the cost to human life, human dignity, civil rights, and just being decent, has no monetary value.

10 comments:

  1. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  2. *shakes head* God forbid they actually would worry and do something that actually matters. My favorite aunt's son and daughter in law live in Texas. Moved there to be with her father. They used to live in Brooklyn. Yeah. My cousin still hates the state after being there 12 years.

    I recently have been hanging out with my friend Wendy, who is all transitioned except the "final step" at end of August. Northeast right now is the safest place for them and where people don't really seem to care,it's not a issue like other parts of the country as is the west coast. The rest of the country she says has a very long way to go yet....and states making big deals like this only cause panic. It saddens her that here in New Hope she is just part of the community and very well liked at her job at the market. Everyone loves her. This is how it should be everywhere. These matters shouldn't be happening. Hell some of them could have already encountered a trans person and didn't even know it.

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  3. Ditto on the Maddie love! <3

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  4. You Rock Maddie! Otherwise, did anyone see the picture that was taken of Texas Gov. Greg ~Retard Bigot~ Abbott and Ashley Smith when he was in San Antonio? It was priceless. She said if he couldn't tell she was transgender then nobody can. If you haven't seen the picture, Google Ashley Smith and Abbott picture, #Bathroombuddy. Really, it's worth it.

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  5. Hi...I just wanted to add Barnes & Noble to the list of trans-friendly companies. When NC passed their idiotic law, we got official notice from corporate that anyone in any state could use whatever bathroom they wished (customers and employees alike). We also had same sex spousal benefits long before the marriage equality passed. I'm leaving the company now to take a new job, but I've always been proud of BN for their social consciousness and commitment to equal rights for all.

    We should support companies like that!

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  6. @Maddie
    You said it perfectly!

    @Leeanna Henderson
    I saw that picture, and priceless is the best description.

    @Jennifer
    That's why I try and list the companies I hear about, so we can support them, and acknowledge them; thanks for adding B&N to the list!

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  7. Props to all companies who back equal rights for everyone

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  8. I guess they're just bored after solving all the State's problems, like hunger, poverty, illiteracy, lack of healthcare, violent crime, domestic abuse, air pollution, flooding, drought, corruption... They really should have tackled mental health!!!

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