LGBT Rights
Rainbow Rodeo
Eye on Texas: Transgender Youth in Texas
Ella, 15, lives in Austin. I photographed her as part of a larger project documenting transgender youth in Texas, whose rights were endangered during the 2017 l...Read More
Hardly Anyone Showed up to a Brain-Melting Anti-LGBT Conference in Texas
The #Teens4Truth conference had few teens but numerous speakers explaining how equal rights for gay and transgender people could lead “to the death of Christianity.”
David Pickup, ex-gay psychotherapist, takes the stage at the Southwest Baptist Theological Seminary’s conference center in south Fort Worth. Pickup specialize...Read More
Trump Nominates Lawyers from Anti-LGBT ‘Religious Freedom’ Group to be Texas Federal Judges
Critics say the judicial appointments could turn federal courts into “the place where civil rights go to die.”
Trump’s nomination of the two religious-right legal activists to vacant federal judge seats in Texas has rattled LGBT rights groups, who call the appointments...Read More
Houston City Employees are Fighting to Uphold Marriage Equality in Texas
Couples turn to the federal courts after Texas’ highest court ruled against benefits for same-sex spouses of government employees.
Two years after the U.S. Supreme Court issued its landmark ruling legalizing same-sex marriage across the country, Texas couples are still fighting for marriage...Read More
Dear Governor Abbott: The ‘Bathroom Bill’ Endangers Trans Texans Like My Son
I’ll tell my son as he gets older that his experience of gender is on the margins of society. But that’s all right; lots of great stuff happens on the margins.
Dear Governor Abbott, Not long ago, my kids and I spent five nights camping in Big Bend. We had a great spot for our little pop-up camper right next to the Rio ...Read More
Trans Texans, Advocates Swarm Texas Capitol to Oppose ‘Bathroom Bills’ (Again)
On Friday, more than 250 people signed up to testify, and the overwhelming majority spoke in opposition.
Hundreds of people formed a line that snaked through the Texas Capitol’s basement early Friday, waiting to testify as lawmakers continue to push a so-called b...Read More
Why We Hired a Civil Rights Reporter
Introducing Michael Barajas, the Observer’s new civil rights reporter
Over the last five years, federal courts have repeatedly ruled that the Texas Legislature intentionally discriminated against racial minorities. That’s a high...Read More
‘Recipe for Discrimination’: Legal Battle Brews Over New ‘Religious Refusal’ Child Welfare Law
The controversial measure passed into law last month violates the separation of church and state, legal experts say.
A new Texas law meant to shield child welfare providers who deny services based on religious beliefs could strap the state with more legal problems than the pro...Read More
Special Session Edition: Dan Patrick Locks the Legislature in a Bathroom Stall
Dan Patrick is forcing a special session to get his bathroom bill passed.
Sometimes the right questions to ask at the Texas Legislature are the simple ones, like: Dear god, what’s happening? And, Dear god, why is this happening? And...Read More