Dear Friends,
Today I stand with transgender children across Texas who are in the crosshairs of Texas legislators. This legislative session, we’ve seen a record number of anti-LGBTQ+ bills, many of which target the transgender community. If passed, these laws would have devastating consequences, such as restricting access to gender-affirming healthcare, preventing trans youth from updating their gender on government documents, and even banning classroom lessons that include information about gender identity. As many of these bills advance along party lines, families are considering leaving the state so their loved ones can lead safe, healthy lives and be treated with dignity.
Trans children aren’t the only community under attack in this legislative session. The majority of Texas legislators are coming after all our fundamental rights and freedoms. What we’ve seen in Florida is now happening in Texas and across the country. They’re banning books, stripping away our voting rights, and taking over our school districts. They’ve taken away the right to abortion access and are now after gender-affirming care.
While red herrings like a Senate measure requiring the 10 Commandments in public schools sprinkle our news feeds, there is legislation to strip away local control, limiting our county’s ability to respond to community needs and deliver economic opportunity through worker protections. The measures, advancing in a context of intentional chaos, move the goalposts on how we set a tax rate, spend our revenue, mitigate disaster, and conduct elections. Altogether, these measures function as a force multiplier, rapidly accelerating an agenda that takes away hard-fought rights, limits access to essential services, and sets the stage for an all-out assault on marginalized people.
During this session, unlike any session before it, trans kids need to see our support at the Capitol and across the state. They need to feel safe and protected, with the potential for a bright future in the state they call home. Let’s fight for them and everyone whose rights are under attack.
Sincerely,
Rodney Ellis