Texas: Growing Up Gay | Coming Out Experience

Wolf Beene, a gay man from Texas shares his incredible life experience as a gay man.

Openly Gay Rabbi Having Impact on Dallas Congregation

Dec 20, 2022 | "I meet a lot of people who have this notion that being gay and being religious are incompatible," Michael Lewis said.

Le pape François congédie un évêque conservateur américain

LE MONDE : Joseph E. Strickland avait tweeté qu’il rejetait le « programme du pape qui sape le dépôt de la foi ». Il est très rare qu’un évêque catholique romain soit purement et simplement relevé de ses fonctions.

Le pape François a démis de ses fonctions l’évêque de Tyler (Texas), Joseph E. Strickland, l’un de ses plus féroces détracteurs parmi les conservateurs catholiques américains, selon un communiqué du Vatican publié samedi.

Il est très rare qu’un évêque catholique romain soit purement et simplement relevé de ses fonctions. Habituellement, les évêques en délicatesse avec le Vatican sont invités à partir avant de présenter leur démission, qui est acceptée par le pape. » | Le Monde avec Reuters | Samedi 11 novembre 2023

Anderson Debates Texas GOPer on Reparative Therapy

Anderson Cooper asks Bryan Hughes, a Texas state representative, about why the state GOP is embracing reparative therapy

The Lincoln Project: CPAC Texas Day 1

Aug 5, 2022 CPAC Texas Day 1 in 90 seconds. The Lincoln Project is a leading pro-democracy organization in the United States — dedicated to the preservation, protection, and defense of democracy. Our fight against Trumpism is only beginning. We must combat these forces everywhere and at all times — our democracy depends on it.

Hi Y’all! Don’t forget, we’re all gonna be seein’ Jeezuz together! – Mark

Texas Republican Platform: Being Gay Is 'Abnormal Lifestyle Choice'

From left: Dan Patrick and Greg Abbott
ADVOCATE: The platform, adopted over the weekend, also opposes “all efforts to validate transgender identity.”

The Republican Party of Texas is well known for its anti-LGBTQ+ stances, but the party platform it adopted this year goes beyond even previous ones, with language calling homosexuality “an abnormal lifestyle choice” and opposing “all efforts to validate transgender identity.”

The party adopted the platform Saturday at its convention in Houston, The Texas Tribune reports. Republican elected officials aren’t required to follow the platform, but the document indicates the general feelings and direction of the party.

Previous platforms included much antigay and anti-trans language, but the “abnormal lifestyle choice” statement is new. The platform also endorses conversion therapy, as it has in the past, and calls it by a new name, “reintegrative therapy.”

“Homosexuality is an abnormal lifestyle choice,” the platform reads. “We believe there should be no granting of special legal entitlements or creation of special status for homosexual behavior, regardless of state of origin, and we oppose any criminal or civil penalties against those who oppose homosexuality out of faith, conviction, or belief in traditional values. No one should be granted special legal status based on their LGBTQ+ identification.”

At least one delegate, David Gebhart, tried to soften this language, saying, “We are the Republican Party of Texas, not the Westboro Baptist Church,” Tribune editor Sewell Chan tweeted. Gebhart’s suggestion was met with laughter and boos. Other delegates made homophobic and sexually charged comments. » | Trudy Ring | Monday, June 20, 2022

Texas GOP Adopts Resolution Rejecting 2020 Election Results

Jun 20, 2022 • CNN's Chris Cillizza breaks down how Trump's hold over some Republicans was on full display at the Texas GOP convention and reports on disturbing rhetoric used in a recent GOP candidate's ad.

Trump reminds me of a spoilt child who plagues his parents to death and won’t shut up until he gets what he wants, until he gets his own way. Further, he likes the sound of his own voice and constantly craves attention. Moreover, he wants to stay in the limelight.

Why the GOP is pandering to the childish needs of this man is beyond my comprehension. No doubt, it is beyond the comprehension of many others, too. – © Mark Alexander

School Shooting Strengthens Case for Guns, Donald Trump Tells NRA

THE GUARDIAN: Speaking at the gun lobby’s convention, the former US president repeated his call to arm teachers

Trump denied guns are the problem and instead called for more school safety. Photograph: Aaron M Sprecher/EPA
Donald Trump has said the recent US school shooting is a reason to arm law-abiding citizens, not disarm them.

The former US president was a guest speaker at the National Rifle Association (NRA), which held its annual convention in Houston on Friday.

The event was held three days after 19 children and two adults were shot dead at a school in Uvalde and put in stark relief America’s deep divisions on gun control.

As demonstrations swelled in Houston, attenders inside the convention – including Trump – continued to deny that guns were the problem and put the emphasis on school safety and mental health. » | Guardian staff and agency | Saturday, May 28, 2022

Texas Primary School Shooting Leaves 21 Dead - BBC News

May 25, 2022 • Nineteen young children and two adults have died in a shooting at a primary school in south Texas.

The gunman opened fire at Robb Elementary School - which teaches children aged seven to 10 - in the city of Uvalde before he was killed by law enforcement, officials said.

The 18-year-old suspect had a handgun, a semi-automatic rifle and high-capacity magazines, investigators have said.

The teenager is suspected of shooting his grandmother before the rampage.


This school shooting, like all others before it, is a national disgrace. Apparently, as nothing is ever done about such barbarity, one would be perfectly justified in concluding that it is more important for Americans to retain access to their guns and assault weapons than it is to keep their innocent, helpless children safe! What an appalling state of affairs! – © Mark

Fusillade au Texas : les Etats-Unis s’entre-tuent, le Parti républicain regarde ailleurs : L’éditorial du « Monde ». Un jeune Texan a tué dix-neuf élèves et deux enseignantes dans une école primaire, à Ulvade. Face aux tragédies qui se succèdent, les élus républicains s’opposent toujours à la moindre législation pour encadrer le marché des armes à feu. »

Uvalde, Buffalo and the Semiautomatic Weapons That Terrorize Us: Within the last two weeks, the country has seen the two deadliest mass shootings of the year, both committed by 18-year-olds. The motive for Tuesday’s attack on elementary school children in Uvalde, Texas, is still unknown. But the motive for the Buffalo attack appears clear from the online screed left by the accused attacker. Influenced by the “great replacement theory,” he sought to kill as many Black people as he could. Ten died. »

Rabbi Describes Escape from Texas Synagogue Siege - BBC News

Jan 17, 2022 • The rabbi of a US synagogue who was taken hostage on Saturday has described how he threw a chair at the gunman in order to escape.

He and two other hostages were then able to get out "without a shot being fired", following a 10-hour siege in Texas.

The hostage-taker, named as British citizen Malik Faisal Akram, was shot dead after a stand-off with police.

US President Joe Biden has described the hostage-taking incident as "an act of terror".


Related articles.

MI5 Investigated Texas Synagogue Hostage-taker in 2020

THE GUARDIAN: UK intelligence concluded Malik Faisal Akram posed no threat, which allowed him to travel to US and buy gun

The British man who took hostages at a Texas synagogue had been under investigation by MI5 as a possible Islamist terrorist threat as recently as 2020, Whitehall sources have acknowledged.

British intelligence closed the investigation, however, after officers had concluded Malik Faisal Akram from Blackburn posed no threat, and as a result he was able to travel freely to the US and purchase a gun.

It is understood the investigation was “mid-level” and took place in the second half of 2020 – but once it had ended Akram was left as a closed subject of interest on MI5’s records, and no information of concern appears to have been passed to the US authorities before the synagogue attack.

The Security Service’s investigation lasted “over four weeks”, a source said. But it ended with an assessment that Akram did not pose a jihadist terror risk and there was no reason to prevent him from travelling abroad.

The acknowledgment is a particular embarrassment to the agency, which prides itself on a close working relationship with its US counterparts. The FBI has known about MI5’s previous investigation for some time, although British sources declined to say whether they had apologised.

Akram, a 44-year-old from Blackburn, was killed after an 11-hour hostage standoff at the Congregation Beth Israel synagogue in the Dallas suburb of Colleyville on Saturday evening. All four hostages survived the siege unharmed. » | Dan Sabbagh | Tuesday, January 18, 2022

The Hostages Escaped. But Synagogues Ask, How Can They Be More Secure? »

Ask Prof Wolff: Why Texas Bans Abortions

The Guardian View on US Abortion Laws: Freedoms Hanging by a Thread

THE GUARDIAN – EDITORIAL: By allowing the Texas law banning abortions after six weeks to stand, the supreme court has joined the attack

Protesters march in Austin, Texas, against the state’s abortion laws. Photograph: AFP/Getty
The announcement by the US supreme court that Texas’s new law banning abortions after six weeks would be allowed to stand, until it hears the federal government’s case against it on 1 November, was a blow to anyone hoping that the court might block attempts to remove women’s constitutional right to abortion. The 1973 decision that established this right, Roe v Wade, is a landmark in the history of the court.

The challenge brought by the Biden administration aims to overturn the Texas law on grounds that the state has violated the court’s authority. By outsourcing enforcement of its abortion ban to private citizens, who since September have been allowed to sue anyone who helps a woman obtain an abortion, Texas legislators have sought “to evade the traditional mechanisms for judicial review”, the suit states. The justice department argues that this is a dangerous precedent with the potential to undermine other supreme court decisions. While some employers are ffering to relocate staff to other states, the women most likely to be harmed by the ban are the poorest and least mobile, who in Texas are disproportionately women of colour. » | Editorial | Monday, October 25, 2021

Keep politics out of medical matters! The criminalisation of abortions does not affect the rich and privileged – they can afford to travel out of state, or even abroad, to get their abortions. This draconian law affects only the poor and under-privileged, who might well be forced to revert to the Victorian solution: knitting needles and bottles of gin! – © Mark

Don Winslow Films - #TexasWarOnWomen

Who in his right mind would ever vote Republican? There was a time when I held the Republican Party in high regard. No longer! The Party is not fit for purpose. They are destroying the once wonderful USA. The USA used to be a beacon of progressive thought and forward-thinking. That, alas, was long ago.

To think that my own country has cut the umbilical cord with the European Union only to get tied to the apron strings of the USA sends shivers down my spine!

Sooner or later, this country will have to re-join its European brothers and sisters. It is imperative that we do so. We also need to start thinking of a federal Europe, of which the UK could take a leading rôle.

Recent events in Afghanistan should have shown us all that we can no longer depend on America for our security. We need to go it alone. And for that, we Europeans need to work closely together and form our own military: a European army, a European air force, and a European navy.

This crooked Brexit referendum should also have shown us all that it was neither fair nor sensible. IT MUST BE REVERSED. Sooner rather than later.

If we do not re-join Europe, the once 'United' Kingdom, a nation of which I was once so proud, will break up: the regions will go their separate ways. Scotland is sure to be the first country to break away from the disUnited Kingdom. The Scots are proud Europeans; and so they should be. – © Mark

To read my comment on the Texas insanity, click here.

Don Winslow Films - #TexasLearnedFromTrump

Frei, fromm und frauenfeindlich in Texas

NEUE ZÜRCHER ZEITUNG: Das neue Abtreibungsgesetz in Texas ist Teil eines Wertesystems, zu dem auch die Ablehnung der Homo-Ehe und das Misstrauen gegen die Corona-Massnahmen gehören. Kaum einer verkörpert diese Skepsis gegenüber dem Staat besser als der Gouverneur Abbott.

Demonstration in Austin gegen das Abtreibungsverbot. | Jay Janner / AP
Seit Mittwoch gilt im amerikanischen Gliedstaat Texas das schärfste Abtreibungsgesetz der USA. Es verbietet Schwangerschaftsabbrüche, sobald der Herzschlag des Fötus feststellbar ist. Das ist schon in der sechsten Woche möglich. Viele Frauen wissen zu diesem frühen Zeitpunkt noch gar nicht, dass sie schwanger sind.

Ein Eilantrag für eine Blockierung des Gesetzes wurde abgelehnt; der Supreme Court entschied am Mittwoch mit 5 zu 4 Stimmen, das Inkrafttreten nicht aufzuschieben. Die Weigerung ist bemerkenswert, weil das Gesetz mit anderen Präzedenzfällen kollidiert, in denen der Oberste Gerichtshof das Recht auf Abtreibung in einem späteren Stadium schützte. 1973 legalisierte er im Urteil Roe v. Wade Abtreibungen bis zum sechsten Monat. Der amerikanische Präsident Joe Biden sagte denn auch, das «extreme Gesetz» in Texas stelle einen eklatanten Verstoss gegen das verbriefte Recht auf Abtreibung dar. » | David Signer, Chicago | Freitag, Spetmber 3, 2021

Abtreibungen selbst nach Vergewaltigung illegal

UMSTRITTENES GESETZ IN TEXAS
FRANKFURTER ALLGEMEINE ZEITUNG: In Texas dürfen Frauen von der sechsten Woche an nicht mehr abtreiben. Zu diesem Zeitpunkt wissen viele aber noch nichts von ihrer Schwangerschaft. Überhaupt ist das neue Gesetz umstritten – von Denunziantentum ist die Rede.

Bis zuletzt hatten viele Menschen in Texas gehofft, dass der Oberste Gerichtshof einschreiten würde – doch in der Nacht von Dienstag auf Mittwoch schwiegen die neun Richterinnen und Richter zum neuen Abtreibungsgesetz in dem republikanisch regierten Bundesstaat. Damit trat es in Kraft. Weniger als 24 Stunden später kam dann doch eine Entscheidung der Richter in Washington, doch änderte diese nichts an der Situation. Mit fünf gegen vier Stimmen entschied das Oberste Gericht, das texanische Gesetz nicht zu blockieren. Die konservative Mehrheit beschied den Anträgen, es zu stoppen, sie seien nicht überzeugend gewesen. In der Begründung schreiben die fünf Richter jedoch auch, dass dies keine Entscheidung über die Rechtmäßigkeit des Gesetzes sei.

Das Gesetz sieht vor, dass Personen, die einen Schwangerschaftsabbruch vornehmen oder unterstützen, rechtlich haftbar gemacht werden können – die Schwangere selbst fällt aber nicht darunter. Die neue Regelung betrifft alle Schwangerschaften von der sechsten Woche an, wenn viele Frauen noch nicht wissen, dass sie schwanger sind. Laut der amerikanischen Gesundheitsbehörde CDC werden geschätzte 65 Prozent der Abtreibungen in den ersten acht, und 91 Prozent in den ersten 13 Wochen nach der Befruchtung vorgenommen. Das texanische Gesetz erklärt damit sehr viele Schwangerschaftsabbrüche faktisch für illegal. Ausnahmen für Vergewaltigungen von Erwachsenen oder Minderjährigen sind nicht vorgesehen. » | Von Frauke Steffens, New York | Donnerstag, 22. September 2021

Man muß sich eine treffende Frage stellen: Warum neigen die Amerikaner immer extreme Positionen zu nehmen? – Mark

Biden promet de défendre le droit à l'avortement et dénonce la loi «radicale» au Texas

Le président américain a fait référence à l'instauration d'un droit à l'avortement par la Cour suprême en 1973. CARLOS BARRIA / REUTERS
LE FIGARO : Le président américain Joe Biden a promis mercredi 1er septembre de défendre le droit des femmes à avorter et vivement critiqué une loi extrêmement restrictive entrée en vigueur au Texas dans la nuit.

«Cette loi radicale est une violation flagrante du droit constitutionnel reconnu dans l'arrêt Roe v. Wade», a-t-il écrit dans un communiqué, en référence à la décision de la Cour suprême de 1973 qui a instauré un droit à l'avortement aux États-Unis. «Nous allons protéger et défendre ce droit (...) mon gouvernement y est très attaché», a-t-il ajouté.

La loi texane, qui fait l'objet d'un recours en urgence devant la Cour suprême, interdit d'avorter une fois les battements du cœur de l'embryon détectés, soit environ à six semaines de grossesse, même en cas d'inceste ou de viol. Fait unique : elle confie exclusivement aux citoyens le soin de la faire respecter en leur donnant la possibilité de poursuivre toute personne ou organisation qui aiderait les femmes à avorter au-delà de ce terme.

Elle «va grandement compliquer l'accès des femmes aux soins de santé dont elles ont besoin, notamment dans les communautés de couleur ou à faibles revenus», a déploré Joe Biden. «Et, de façon scandaleuse, elle délègue à des citoyens privés les poursuites contre ceux qui pourraient aider» les femmes à avorter, relève-t-il. » | Par Le Figaro avec AFP | mercredi 1 septembre 2021

Le Mississippi demande l'abrogation du droit à l'avortement aux États-Unis »

Une loi interdisant l'immense majorité des avortements entre en vigueur au Texas

Les anti-avortement avaient manifesté fin mai au Texas. SERGIO FLORES / AFP
LE FIGARO : La plupart des avortements sont devenus illégaux mercredi dans le vaste et très conservateur État américain du Texas, où une loi sans précédent, qui encourage la population à dénoncer les contrevenants, est entrée en vigueur dans la nuit.

Elle peut encore être bloquée par la Cour suprême des États-Unis, qui a été saisie en urgence lundi par les défenseurs du droit à l'avortement. Sans attendre sa décision, le président Joe Biden a fustigé une loi «radicale», aux dispositions «honteuses», et a promis de «protéger» le droit des femmes à avorter.

Grossesse interrompue à six semaines

Le texte, signé en mai par le gouverneur républicain Greg Abbott, interdit d'interrompre toute grossesse une fois que les battements de cœur de l'embryon sont détectés, à environ six semaines de grossesse, alors que la plupart des femmes ne savent même pas qu'elles sont enceintes. » | Par Le Figaro avec AFP | mercredi 1 spetembre 2021

Le Texas adopte une loi interdisant d'avorter après six semaines de grossesse »

Supreme Court, Breaking Silence, Won’t Block Texas Abortion Law

THE NEW YORK TIMES: The law, which prohibits most abortions after six weeks and went into effect on Wednesday, was drafted by Texas lawmakers with the goal of frustrating efforts to challenge it in federal court.

A “Bans Off Our Bodies” protest at the Texas State Capitol in Austin on Wednesday. Montinique Monroe for The New York Times
The Supreme Court refused just before midnight on Wednesday to block a Texas law prohibiting most abortions, less than a day after it took effect and became the most restrictive abortion measure in the nation.

The vote was 5 to 4, with Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. joining the court’s three liberal members in dissent.

The majority opinion was unsigned and consisted of a single long paragraph. It said the abortion providers who had challenged the law in an emergency application to the court had not made their case in the face of “complex and novel” procedural questions. The majority stressed that it was not ruling on the constitutionality of the Texas law and did not mean to limit “procedurally proper challenges” to it.

But the ruling was certain to fuel the hopes of abortion opponents and fears of abortion rights advocates as the court takes up a separate case in its new term this fall to decide whether Roe v. Wade, the landmark 1973 decision establishing a constitutional right to the procedure, should be overruled. It also left Texas abortion providers turning away patients as they scrambled to comply with the law, which prohibits abortions after roughly six weeks.

All four dissenting justices filed opinions. » | Adam Liptak, J. David Goodman and Sabrina Tavernise | Wednesday, September 1, 2021

I find the extreme right-wing positions taken in American politics very disturbing. As my followers know by now, I do not like extreme politics, either on the left or right. I believe in the golden middle way wherever and whenever possible. I certainly do not think that politicians should be meddling in medical matters relating to a woman's body. This should be left to the medical doctors and specialists who know far better than judges, law-makers or politicians what course of action is correct for their patients.

One gets the feeling that these legislarors are in serious competition with the Taliban!

We've just had to live through four years of that awful man, Trump, in power; now this draconian law! This law puts medical doctors in an invidious and extremely difficult position. Whilst I do believe that abortions should be avoided whenever possible, there are times when a mother's life is at risk of death if she continues to carry the baby full-term. And what if the mother's death will leave her other children without a mother? Have these lawmakers really thought this through? Also, if a young girl gets raped and ends up pregnant as a result of the rape, she will now have to carry the rapist's child for the full nine-month term and be its mother for the rest of her life. What a burden to bear! Who'd want to be a doctor in Texas? Or a mother in Texas, for that matter!

So what do they want to ban next? Alcohol? Gay weddings? Tobacco?

The Prohibition didn't stop the drinking of alcohol in America in the Twenties and early Thirties. It just drove drinking underground. Until the stupid law had to be repealed. This law is equally stupid. Just as the Prohibition didn't stop drinking; this law will not stop abortions. All it will do is drive the aborting of unwanted babies underground: to the backstreets! We'll be back to primitive ways of aborting babies next, like hot baths, bottles of gin, and knitting needles! I believe that this is how many an unwanted baby was aborted in years gone by. Further, this is a regressive measure because it will hit the poorest in society the most. Rich women will be able to travel out of state for their abortions, or even travel abroad to get them. Such a solution will probably not be affordable for the poorest women in society. In short: The Prohibition didn't stop the drinking of alcohol; and this law will not stop abortions either! It will stop some, but it will cause unspeakable misery for those who will be unable to circumvent the law. "I rest my case."

I feel very sorry to have to say this, but I fear that the USA has seen its finest days. It used to be the wellspring of forward thinking and fresh ideas. Now it seems to have taken on the röle of being the wellspring of oppression and suppression. – © Mark

Related articles here.