The Texas Senate has passed two bills that would restrict drag show performances in front of minors and end “drag queen story hour” in Texas libraries.
Senate Bill 12, authored by Sen. Bryan Hughes (R-Mineola), would stipulate that “A person who controls the premises of a commercial enterprise may not allow a sexually oriented performance to be presented in the presence of an individual younger than 18 years of age.”
In addition to levying a $10,000 fine, it would explicitly identify any incident with a performer in drag who “sings, lip syncs, dances, or otherwise performs before an audience” as a sexually oriented performance if it also “appeals to the prurient interest in sex.”
Sen. Hughes said that he was “Proud to author this bill protecting the innocence of children.”
In a statement sent to The Dallas Express, Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick said, “It is shocking to me that any parent would allow their young child to be sexualized by drag shows.”
“Children, who cannot make decisions on their own, must be protected from these sexually-oriented drag shows now occurring more and more in front of them,” Patrick continued.
“I selected SB 12 to be a top priority of mine because someone must fight back against the radical Left’s degradation of our society and values,” he added. “I will not allow Texas children to be sexualized and scarred for life by harmful drag performances.”
The ACLU of Texas denounced the bill, claiming on Twitter, “The #txlege’s attempt to ban or limit drag shows is part of a wave of political attacks against the LGBTQIA+ community.”
“The mental health toll from these attacks has been devastating. Bills that attack drag are yet another attempt to steal joy from the LGBTQIA+ community,” the group continued.
If the bill were to pass the House and be signed into law, it would not make drag shows entirely illegal. Instead, it would prohibit sexualized drag when in the presence of children.
Senate Bill 1601, also authored by Hughes, would prohibit municipal libraries from receiving taxpayer funds “if the library hosts an event at which a man presenting as a woman or a woman presenting as a man reads a book or a story to a minor for entertainment and the person being dressed as the opposite gender is a primary component of the entertainment.”
Regarding, SB 1601, Lt. Gov. Patrick said in a statement received by The Dallas Express, “The radical Left’s attempt to sexualize and indoctrinate Texas children is never-ending.”
“It is infuriating and unfathomable that public money has been used to fund drag queen story hour in Texas libraries,” he added. “The Senate’s passage of SB 1601 is of utmost importance to put a stop to the sexualization of our children.”
Woori Juntos, a left-wing activist group, condemned both pieces of legislation, saying, “SB 12 and SB 1601 are not only discriminatory, but also harmful to our communities.”
“Banning drag performances and defunding libraries hosting Drag Storytime events directly attacks diversity, inclusion, and freedom of expression,” the organization claimed.
Similarly, Callie Butcher, the president of the Dallas LGBT Bar Association, reacted to the news, tweeting, “#SB12 and #SB1601 finally passed, what a joke. As said in my testimony, if you don’t want your kids to go to a drag show, don’t take them.”
Both pieces of legislation will now proceed to the House for consideration.
The republican party platform shows that it’s all about their “… prurient interest in sex.”
How about protecting our children from groomers, pedophiles and freaks? Dems main goal seems to be sexualizing other peoples kids. Why is that so important to you?
Leave it to the ACLU. They want to get involved in corrupting children to the drag way of life and not at all concerned about the children. Why the push all of a sudden to get dragsters in front of children? Things like this do not happen overnight. Who is behind this?
Drag way of life???? It is a person in costume telling a story, what is wrong with you? You are the problem
What does the person in drag gain from all of this? Why do they have to be in a costume? Seems they have identity crisis and mental issues, who knows how stable these people really are?
Isn’t characterizing the issue inaccurately also a problem? It is not illegal for a person in costume to tell a story. It is illegal a person in a sexualized costume to tell a story to kids.
Weirdos trying to sexualize other peoples kids is the problem. You can pervert your own if you have any, but leave the kids alone. It’s pretty simple.
Are you really that gullible? I GUARANTEE that you’ve probably seen The Birdcage with Robin Williams or Tootsie with Dustin Hoffman in drag. You probably let your kids watch it too. Unfortunately, Drag Queen Story hour isn’t nearly THAT entertaining OR SEXUAL! You people are so easy to lead around by the nose. I wonder what the next object of your hate will be? I would think, after all these years, you’d be running out of people and things to hate by now, but it seems every year, there’s a new target Fox gins you up about.
Go back to your msnbc porn and leave normal families and their kids alone. No one is stopping you from corrupting them with inappropriate sexual material. Why is it so important to you?
Why don’t we work on banning children from the Catholic Churches where they actually get molested by the thousands each year and has been proven for decades. Drag queens aren’t hurting your children, the GOP and the churches do! Fight the real enemy! Churches are not for children and either are guns!
Typical. Can’t have purpose, meaning or any real argument FOR what you you want to do so you point a finger to someone else to attempt to accuse them. How about just STOPPING the sexualization of children by LGBQT and everyone?
Instead you point…look over there! While you are looking there WE can do as we want to your children.
Not Happening.
With the statement from ACLU it is now obvious that any LGBQT that “performs” in front of a child finds JOY in doing that. Joy during a sexual display is in fact sexual gratification. Gratification sexually oriented in front of a minor exactly meets the definition of a FELONY sex act using a minor. I can’t wait to see this begin.
The original argument was “this is private and consensual”. Then the argument was “Don’t ask, don’t tell”. Then “we have the right to teach Children it is ok to be gay, and you can’t stop us”.
Guess what, You are going to find out HOW wrong you were. Every society that has allowed such as you demand has died, literally ended. History proves this over and over and over again. Then again it is doubtful that many read any longer.
Why don’t you guys outlaw halloween
and please don’t give them candy. Are they in drag when their horrible parents put their little costumes on.
Mickie and Minnie, Cinderella, the Little Mermaid and the list just goes on. And the costumes drag shops and candy sales make billions.
The Dallas diocese had to pay out $120M to the victims decades ago.
If you have any evidence of your allegation ‘where they actually get molested by the thousands each year’ I’m sure there are plenty of trial lawyers who would be interested in hearing about it.
You tell em girl!! I really just read the Dallas Express to poke fun in the comments section. Like shooting ducks in a barrel.
Amen L.B.
SO the ACLU admits that the client they represent, the LBGQT (alphabet soup) society FINDS JOY in presenting themselves to minors and displaying their sexuality openly to minors.
That is enough to PROVE sexual intent (the joy itself is in fact connected with the sexuality display making it an unlawful sexual act with a minor for the benefit of the adult).
We can now make FELONY arrests for unlawful sexual acts with minors and send them to prison and label them sexual predators permanently.
Do you hear me State Prosecutors? The Attorney for The entirety has admitted publicly that there is PLEASURE (joy) being taken away by this law!!!
The LGBTQXYZ garbage is a mental illness and should be delt with as such. Pretending to be a woman when you’re a man is sickening.
Sorry Bill, but everything you know is wrong.
How would you know bill?
I’m more concerned about children being shot to death by an AR15 than someone in drag reading them a book. Get your priorities in order. This isn’t one of them. It’s a distraction so you don’t have to pass gun laws to protect our children.
When even the drag queens call themselves adult entertainment… we should listen. The parents should be held responsible. It’s unfortunate that we have to enact laws that protect children. Our society is racing to the bottom. Children are always exploited. That includes churches, schools…
Karen are parents dropping their children off at the Drag Club. There are so many children being dropped off at school and their parents pray that they make it home alive.
It’s only the closet cases that get turned on by a dude in a dress lip syncing a pop song. “I fell asleep to RuPaul’s drag race and woke up gay!” Hahahah
Johnny you would have to troll the channels to find a show like that. RuPaul has a drag show and you became gay. That’s weird, do you sneak into drag shows?
You sound like a bully, in drag! Get some help about bullying, maybe you will feel better about being gay. It’s okay!
Hmmm. I wonder if they’re also going to ban putting your five and six year old girls in beauty pageants where they are dressed sexually y their mothers and taught to strut and flaunt themselves as if they were adults?
How did Harlan Crow vote?
Need to ask Justice Thomas about that, don’t know!
Law will just be putting an age limit on kids under 18 years of age to attend drag shows, they are not banning them…so what is Wong with putting an age limit on drag shows? And libraries are funded by tax payers…your gonna tell me that they have to resort to drag individuals to read to lil kids…come on we are talking about lil kids ..I have no problem with drag shows or individuals I have been to them, t is a form of entertainment…but i would not have taken my kids under 18 to them. Is there such a rush by the drag community to have the right to entertain chidren,
Is State Senator Hugh’s and LT Governor Patrick going to these place’s with their children. How do they know about these show’s?
They need to work on infrastructure, jobs, education and the border wall. The border wall is Texas’s responsibility, not the White House. All the previous Governors took care of the border. When Abbott took over, he never did a thing.
Sorry but the border wall is a federal responsibility not a state issue. That’s why Abbott can’t and shouldn’t be touching it.
I wonder why George W. Bush and Vicente Fox got into a squabble about the border when Bush was the Governor? He didn’t ask Clinton, Bush took control because he didn’t want a Dem President to take control.