An official webpage containing “resources for LGBTQ community members” was taken down after Former Texas State Senator Don Huffines posted a video on Twitter, shown below. The video contained criticism towards Governor Abbott for “protecting transgender youth,” Forbes reports.
It’s offensive to see @GregAbbott_TX use our tax dollars to advocate for transgender ideology. This must end. #txlege pic.twitter.com/gQiAEJZ8YR
— Don Huffines (@DonHuffines) August 31, 2021
The website, which belongs to The Texas Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS), reportedly removed “resources and support” for LGBTQ to access. In specific, the “Gender Identity and Sexual Orientation” sub-page was taken down, including suicide and crisis helplines.
Former Texas State Senator Huffines is challenging Governor Abbott in the Republican Primary for the 2022 Texas Gubernatorial election. On August 31, Huffines shared a video on Twitter in which he denounced Abbott’s actions towards transgender youth. In the video, Huffines says, “These are not Texas values, these are not Republican party values, but these are obviously Greg Abbott’s values, that’s why we need a change, that’s what my campaign’s about.”
Huffines’s issue with Gov. Abbott had to do with the website, in which Huffines claims “promoted transgender sexual policies to Texas youth.”
The connection between the page disappearance and Huffine’s criticism had only come to light after emails were found via the Houston Chronicle. The Chronicle found that Patrick Crimmins, the communication’s director of the Texas DFPS, stated in an email, “We may need to take that page down, or somehow revise content.”
The frenzy came after Huffines video started gaining traction online, The Insider Reports. After the webpage was taken down, Huffines followed up with a tweet saying, “I told Texans I would get this DFPS website taken down and stop Greg Abbott from using our tax dollars to promote transgender ideology.”
On Tuesday, Democrat Senators emailed Abbott and his team asking to “to make certain all youth, especially those in the LGBTQ+ community” have access to important resources. They also requested that the webpage gets reinstated, The Texas Tribune writes.