(Texas Scorecard) – Attorney General Ken Paxton is appealing a federal judge’s ruling that temporarily blocked the Texas A&M University System’s drag show ban, arguing the performances are “obscene and illegal.”
The ban was enacted by the university system’s Board of Regents, citing compliance with executive orders from President Donald Trump and Gov. Greg Abbott prohibiting taxpayer dollars from promoting “gender ideology.” But last week, U.S. District Judge Lee Rosenthal sided with the Texas A&M Queer Empowerment Council, which sued the university and claimed the ban violated their First Amendment rights.
In response, Paxton has filed a notice of appeal and a motion to stay the ruling, aiming to keep the ban in place while the legal battle plays out.
“The Constitution does not require Texas’ colleges and universities to promote offensive, degrading, and lewd behavior on their campuses,” said Paxton in a statement. “These filings aim to ensure that our educational institutions are focused solely on promoting academics, not a woke agenda.”
Paxton’s office noted that the A&M case isn’t the only one. The attorney general is also defending West Texas A&M University’s drag show ban in a separate case before the Fifth Circuit.
“President Trump’s executive order stopping federal funds from being used to promote gender ideology was crystal clear,” Paxton added. “The Board’s ban on obscene drag shows is in lawful accordance with that order.”
The event at the center of the current legal fight is “Draggieland,” an annual drag show held on the A&M campus in College Station. The judge allowed the event to proceed last week, writing that drag is not inherently obscene and comparing the performance to other campus events like beauty pageants and Broadway-style shows.
After the judge’s decision last week, the event took place on Thursday.
Meanwhile, the University of Texas and the University of North Texas systems have also put a stop to drag shows on their campuses.