Texas Legislator Bryan Slaton, who represents the Greenville area of Texas, has filed a bill to ban drag shows intended for minors. This move was sparked by a family-friendly drag show that was held during Pride celebrations over the weekend. A Dallas bar called Mr. Misster held an event called “Drag the kids to Pride” that attracted supporters as well as protestors.
In his statement, Slaton wrote, “The events of this past weekend were horrifying and show a disturbing trend in which perverted adults are obsessed with sexualizing young children. As a father of two young children, I would never take my children to a drag show and I know Speaker Dan Phelan and the rest of my Republican colleagues wouldn’t either. Protecting our own children isn’t enough, and our responsibility as lawmakers extends to the sexualization that is happening across Texas.”
This comes as yet another attack on the LGBTQ+ community. Most recently, Texas legislation has passed a bill that bans transgender children from sports teams. Additionally, Texas governor Greg Abbott has been encouraging “licensed professionals” and “members of the general public” to report parents who are supportive of their transgender children, claiming it is child abuse.
Equality Texas CEO Ricardo Martinez said in a statement to The Advocate, “In spite of Rep. Slaton’s attempts to harass, demean, and belittle his own LGBTQ+ constituents on the floor of the Texas House, none of his numerous anti-trans amendments were adopted. In a state that has a history of being openly hostile to LGBTQ+ people, drag shows have been creating safe places for our community for nearly a century. As early as the 1930s there was a thriving drag scene in San Antonio.”
This “cry for protecting children” comes two weeks after 19 children and two teachers were killed in a mass shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalve, TX. No laws have been introduced in response to the tragedy.
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