SAN ANTONIO — Members of the Texas LGBTQ community are worried about the impacts of new legislation set to take effect on Friday.
Senate Bill 12 is among the several anti-LGBTQ bills signed by Gov. Greg Abbott during the regular legislative session.
The bill criminalizes “sexually oriented performances” in the presence of minors. Republican lawmakers initially drafted the bill to include specific references to drag shows and performers, but the amended version omits those terms, which has created further uncertainty and what would fall under a violation of the law.
San Antonio native Lyn-Z Andrews has embraced who she is since childhood.
“I remember just feeling different, like one of the girls," said Andrews, who is a transgender woman.
Andrews runs her own entertainment company, putting on drag shows and performing stand-up comedy.
“Drag is like guns, some people are for it, some people are not and that’s your choice. We’re not here to tell you what to do. But don’t tell us how to live our lives,” Andrews said.
In early August, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Texas filed a lawsuit in U.S. district court, challenging SB 12 over its legality, claiming the legislation “threatens the livelihood and free expression of many Texans, including drag performers.”
The first hearing was held on Monday, which includes a San Antonio-based plaintiff, 360 Queen Entertainment.
Andrews is concerned about the future of hosting drag shows.
“This is some people’s bread and butter, this is my company, this is my money,” Andrews said. “When it comes to my shows, they are primarily 21 and over. If it is at a restaurant and I did work at a restaurant years back, we knew no foul language, costumes would be appropriate.”
Robert Salcido, executive director of Pride Center San Antonio, has been monitoring the litigation challenging several pieces of anti-LGBTQ legislation.
Lawmakers also passed legislation targeting trans youth health care and participation in college athletics.
Salcido stressed the importance of non-profits such as Pride Center San Antonio to continue pressing forward through public education surrounding LGBTQ matters.
“It’s a reality, people are leaving our state because of this,” Salcido said. “Organizations like ours are going to work to continue to affirm our community and doing whatever we can that is legally possible for us to do.”