Critics blast Texas GOP bill to ban drag shows in public
LGBTQ Texans and civil rights advocates returned to Austin on Thursday to protest two bills that would restrict drag performances across the state.
The Senate State Affairs Committee considered a bill on Thursday that would ban drag performances in public spaces and prevent children from attending shows held at restaurants or other private businesses. Another measure would take state funding away from public libraries that host “drag queen story times.”
It was the third time in two weeks that they spoke out against legislation that they believe would harm the LGBTQ community. Their testimony also came just days after hundreds of people rallied at the Capitol to oppose at least 140 bills filed this session that would infringe on LGBTQ rights, according to a bill tracker by Equality Texas.
Republicans say the drag show bills are necessary to protect children from viewing sexually explicit performances and to shield them from content that is not age appropriate. Texas is one of at least 14 other states that have considered similar measures this year, and Tennessee became the first to ban drag shows in public spaces earlier this month.
“Drag shows are sexually explicit and expose children to issues of sexuality and identity that should be reserved for adults,” said state Sen. Bryan Hughes, R-Mineola and the author of the bills.
But LGBTQ Texans say that’s not true — rather, drag shows are an artform and a key part of their culture. They argue the measures are unconstitutional and could spur more violent attacks against them, as businesses hosting drag events across
the state have been met with threats and protests.
Senate Bill 12, the measure to ban drag shows from public spaces and in front of children, does not include the word “drag.” Instead, it defines a “sexually oriented performance” as one in which a man is “exhibiting” as a woman or the reverse and that “appeals to the prurient interest in sex.”
If signed into law, businesses that violate the measure would face up to $10,000 in fines. Performers could be charged with a Class A misdemeanor, which is punishable by up to a year in jail and a $4,000 fine.
“I’m disappointed, because I have to believe that each of you understands that there’s no problem that needs solving here,” said Callie Butcher, the president of the Dallas LGBT Bar Association. “The answer to this supposed issue is simple: If you don’t want your child to go to a drag show, don’t take them.”
Civil rights advocates said the proposal raises constitutional concerns, as the First Amendment protects the freedom of expression. It may also violate anti-discrimination laws, they said.
“This could ensnare and create a statewide gender police, which goes far beyond drag to actually criminalize anyone — whether it’s a man singing a song by Dolly Parton, whether it’s a trans or nonbinary person simply performing and being who they are,” said Brian Klosterboer, an attorney with the ACLU of Texas.
The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression, representing an LGBTQ student organization and its leaders, sued the president of West Texas A&M University on Friday after he canceled an on-campus drag show that was scheduled for the end of the month.
In a letter announcing his decision to ban drag shows on campus, President Walter Wendler said he objected to the performances because they “stereotype women in cartoon-like extremes for the amusement of others and discriminate against womanhood.”
Mary Elizabeth Castle, the director of government relations for the conservative group Texas Values Action, reiterated that argument during Thursday’s hearing: “If our society really wants to change that view of how we treat and respect the image of women, then I think that we shouldn’t have these very unhealthy views in front of our children.”
The students, with FIRE’s backing, say Wendler is misrepresenting the artform — and his distaste for drag shows is not a reason to ban them.
“Whether students gather on campus to study the Bible, host a political talk, or put on a drag show for charity, the First Amendment prohibits public university officials from suppressing the students’ expression simply because the administrator (or anyone else) finds the message offensive,” their lawsuit states.
Hughes said drag performances are not protected under the First Amendment, and courts would decide what is considered a sexual performance.
“Obviously, we understand that obscenity is not protected speech,” he said.
Opponents argued that the bill doesn’t impact women dressing in feminine clothes, and it wrongly characterizes all drag performances as inherently sexual or inappropriate.
“I’ve seen more children and more skin at my local Hooters than I have at any drag show,” said one testifier, a policy graduate student at the University of Texas at Austin.
The bill also would not impact all drag performers equally, said Brigitte Bandit, an Austin drag queen. She said she was born female and performs in feminine attire — so “why should I be able to continue the same kinds of events with similar content and costumes, but not my male counterparts?”
“These bills discriminate against people based on sex and not the actual content of performances,” she said.
Senate Bill 1601 on the drag show story times also does not explicitly mention drag. It similarly targets events in which one sex is “presenting” as the other and “the person being dressed as the opposite gender is a primary component of the entertainment.”
“Some see the concept as unconventional since libraries are normally more reserved, and the queens usually host nightlife events rather than leading singalongs,” Hughes said.
Baylor Johnson, the marketing and public information program manager at the Austin Public Library, said the library has hosted at least two drag queen story times over the past three years, both in response to requests from community members. The content was age appropriate, he said, and “the families who chose to attend them had a fun time celebrating childhood literacy and creativity.”
The committee did not take a vote on the bills on Thursday but is expected to advance it at a future meeting. After that, the legislation will head to the Senate floor.