Tag Archives: Houston Equal Rights Ordinance

Politics, Texas Politics

Plano Throws Out Anti-ERO Petition. Could It Affect Houston’s Case??

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As the battle over non-discrimination ordinances bounces across the state, all eyes must take a moment to focus on the city of Plano.  In what some have called a bold move, the city has thrown out the entirety of a petition against the Plano Equal Rights Ordinance.  Here’s the information directly from city press release…

The City of Plano has determined that a recently circulated Equal Rights petition is invalid and will not move forward. Plano’s City Secretary was unable to certify the petition because it failed to meet State and local requirements for validation.

[…]

The petition contained false information regarding the Equal Rights Ordinance, claiming it regulates bathrooms. The ordinance does not regulate bathrooms. By making this false representation, the Equal Rights petition asked signees to repeal an ordinance that does not exist.

Texas Election Code requires petitions submitted in cities located in two counties to include a column for the signee’s county of voter registration. Since Plano is in two counties, that column was mandatory. However, none of the petition pages included it.

 

Plano officials even sent an email to petitioners during the collection period stating that such issues would be examined once the petitions were turned in.

As expected, the decision received swift rebuke from the petitioners, as Wendy Hundley of the Dallas Morning News reports…

 

“While we are shocked that the city has so little regard for its citizens, we remain committed to advancing religious liberty and challenging this ordinance that clearly violates laws protecting religious freedom,” said Jeff Mateer, general counsel for the Liberty Institute, a Plano-based nonprofit organization that defends religious liberty.

“It’s clear that Plano City Council has no interest in listening to the people,” Jonathan Saenz of Texas Values Action said in an email. “There is no question that enough signatures were submitted and the City Council does not want to be accountable to the people. These arrogant government officials have not heard the last from the people and the real voice of Plano.”

Both organizations supported the group that launched the petition drive, Plano Citizens United, and served as the group’s mouthpiece.

 

Despite their anger, the city of Plano has a strong case by which to invalidate the petitions.  Their actions could even have implications for the legal drama surrounding Houston’s Equal Rights Ordinance.

In particular, the issue that Plano brings up about counties could also apply to the Houston case.  Per Chapter 277 of the Texas Election Code, any successful petition effort must contain the following information from signees…

 

Sec. 277.002. VALIDITY OF PETITION SIGNATURES. (a) For a petition signature to be valid, a petition must:

(1) contain in addition to the signature:

(A) the signer’s printed name;

(B) the signer’s:

(i) date of birth; or

(ii) voter registration number and, if the territory from which signatures must be obtained is situated in more than one county, the county of registration;

(C) the signer’s residence address; and

(D) the date of signing; and

(2) comply with any other applicable requirements prescribed by law.

(b) The signature is the only information that is required to appear on the petition in the signer’s own handwriting.

(c) The use of ditto marks or abbreviations does not invalidate a signature if the required information is reasonably ascertainable.

(d) The omission of the state from the signer’s residence address does not invalidate a signature unless the political subdivision from which the signature is obtained is situated in more than one state. The omission of the zip code from the address does not invalidate a signature.

 

One quick examination of the Houston petition reveals that it is missing some critical information from letter B.  Petitioners did not ask for the signee’s date of birth, instead opting for the voter registration number.  That’s fine to do, but when choosing the registration number option, they were also supposed to create a column for the voter’s county of residence because the city of Houston resides in 3 counties.  Here’s one page of the Houston petition showing that this was not properly done…

petition p1

 

Though petition information is public record, Texas Leftist has chosen not to publish the names of signees or of the petition collector.

So it’s possible that even Houston could have taken the initial position of invalidating all signatures for this fact alone.  Of course in taking such a path, the city may have opened itself up to scrutiny of previous petitions that have been accepted without all of the proper information, yet were honored on good faith effort.   As Houston awaits a final count of valid signatures, it will be interesting to see if any elements brought forth in the Plano situation affect the fate of HERO.

 

Houston, Houston Politics

Candidates Gravitate To Houston At Large 1 Race

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Though we are still a long way out from the high campaign season, Houston City Council races are already starting to get complicated… especially for Progressive, Pro-Equality voters. As John Wright reports via Project Q Houston, two of the city’s most notable political forces are now in a crowded field for City Council…

 

After narrowly missing a runoff for Houston City Council in 2013, Jenifer Rene Pool hoped 2015 would be her year.

Pool, who’s vying to make history as Texas’ first transgender elected official, decided in early 2014 to run for the At-Large Position 1 seat, which will be open in November because incumbent Stephen Costello is term-limited.

Pool, who ran for the At Large Position 3 seat in 2013, changed her website and Facebook page to reflect the new campaign, in addition to printing business cards and voter pushcards.

“Anybody who knew me knew that I was running for At-large Position 1,” Pool said. “I’d always hoped that this year the community would rally behind my campaign – to win this time.”

But those hopes were dampened during a holiday party for Houston Democratic clubs in December, Pool said. That’s when Lane Lewis, a gay man who serves as chair of the county party, announced he’ll also seek the At-Large Position 1 seat.

 

Wright’s post goes on to state that Pool was not pleased with Lewis’ decision to run for the seat.  Lewis had no comment.

On the one hand, Houston’s Progressive, Pro-Equality community should be glad to have a strong slate of candidates for the 2015 election.  Even with Mayor Parker’s time in office coming to a close, it’s great to see other LGBT leaders, allies courageous enough to join the cause.

On the other hand, it is perplexing that everyone insists on running for one very popular seat when others are available. Strong candidates like Pool, Lewis and newcomer Philippe Nassif have continued to pile into the At Large Position 1 race, while another seat for At Large Position 4 remains noticeably thin on challengers… save for the well-qualified Laurie Robinson. Those unfamiliar with Houston politics may wonder why so many candidates are filing for one seat over another.  Both are At Large, meaning any Houston resident can run for the seat, regardless of where they live.

The short answer?  Many assume that because Council Member C.O. Bradford is African-American, there has to be another African-American take over his seat.  But the assumption is inaccurate.  With 11 district seats and 5 At Large, the Council has plenty of opportunities for anyone and everyone that would like to run.  Saving At Large 4 for candidates that haven’t even filed yet is not logical.

Which brings us to the original post topic. “Opportunity” is also a key term in this equation, because each candidate has a unique set of opportunities that they can leverage in the 2015 elections.  But they don’t all rest in At Large 1.  For example, if Pool were to switch to At Large 3, she would likely have a much larger support base in a head-to-head match up with CM Kubosh than she could attain having to split the “Democrat” vote and donor/endorsement base with Lewis. Given the unique history surrounding Pool, Kubosh and their opposing roles in the Houston Equal Rights Ordinance, this seems the most logical match up for a 2015 contest.  At Large 4 is also an option for anyone wishing to pursue it, but would seem a much better fit at this point for Nassif.

With months to go before the filing deadlines, we can all expect to see much political jockeying.  When all the dust settles, let’s hope that those changes don’t leave the city’s healthy community of Progressive voters with some tough choices to make.  Unlike past election cycles, 2015 is a year where there seems to be room enough for all.

 

Equality, Houston, Politics, Texas Politics

Big Government Texas Part 1: TX Lege Defending Discrimination??

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You know the old saying Everything is bigger in Texas right?  Well that’s especially true when it comes to government oppression from the state legislature and Governor’s office.  Sure, Texas TEA-CONs (TEApublican CONservatives) like Greg Abbott and Dan Patrick love nothing more than to scream and yell about how President Obama and Washington are violating their rights and liberties to govern their own state how they see fit.  But the ugly truth??  In an ultimate show of hypocrisy, the TEA-CON leaders turn right back around and oppress the citizens of Texas and our municipalities with a much heavier hand than Washington could ever hope for.

So, as a way to finally expose this TEA-CON oppression, Texas Leftist is beginning a new blog series for the 2015 Texas Legislative Session.

B-I-G Government Texas.  

And on this first day of the 84th, hypocrisy abounds, especially for any and all fighting for equality.  Here’s the story from John Wright of the Texas Observer…

Four Republican lawmakers from the Plano area plan to introduce legislation that would bar cities and counties from adopting ordinances prohibiting discrimination against LGBT people, the Observer has learned. The proposed legislation also threatens to nullify existing LGBT-inclusive nondiscrimination ordinances in cities that are home to roughly 7.5 million Texans—or more than one-quarter of the state’s population.

The bill comes in response to the Plano City Council’s passage last month of an equal rights ordinance banning discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity in employment, housing and public accommodations.

“There is legislation that’s being worked on,” Rep. Matt Shaheen (R-Plano) told a group of pastors who gathered in mid-December at Plano’s Prestonwood Baptist Church in response to passage of the city’s equal rights ordinance, according to an audio recording obtained by the Observer.

“Jeff Leach, who’s also a state representative—he and I represent the majority of Plano—he’s actually leading an effort to nullify these types of ordinances statewide,” Shaheen said. “There’s actually four state representatives that represent Plano—all of us will be joint authors of that legislation—but Rep. Leach will lead that effort.”

Shaheen declined the Observer’s request for an interview about the legislation, which had not yet been filed as the session got under way Tuesday. Shaheen, Leach and the other two GOP Plano lawmakers—Reps. Pat Fallon and Jodie Laubenberg—wrote a letter to the Plano City Council opposing the equal rights [ordinance] prior to its passage. Calls to the offices of Fallon, Leach and Laubenberg went unreturned.

In one swoop, this bill would take away critical protections for Texans living in Texas’ largest cities like Dallas, Houston Austin and San Antonio, along with other smaller, brave municipalities.  It is a bill based solely on discrimination and lies, most of which are against the LGBT community.

As if that wasn’t offensive enough, the greater hypocrisy here is that the state legislature, many of whom have made their careers preaching about “liberty” “freedom” and “self-governance” all day every day, are now seeking to squash the rights of Texas cities and counties to prevent and discourage the discrimination of their citizens!  It’s the textbook definition of “Big Government”.  Last time I checked, the Houston Equal Rights Ordinance was passed by that city’s governing body, the Houston City Council.  They have every right to make decisions about the laws governing their municipality.

For a true Conservative or Libertarian, this bill slowly creeping into the Texas Legislature has got to be most troubling.  How can one stand against government interference at the Federal level, but then condone an even more substantive intrusion from the state??

So the next time you hear that Texas TEA-CON lawmakers are trying to “limit government” or “ensure personal freedom”, you’ll know what they are really trying to do.  If passed, this bill would put decades of hard-fought gains for Texas equality behind bars.

Texas Equality Behind Bars

The Lone Star State cannot let that happen.  If you or your loved ones live in Texas, now is the time to contact your state representatives and urge them not to support this bill.  They need to know that YOUR rights and freedoms stand to be violated if this monstrosity is passed.

Houston, Houston Politics

Donna Edmundson Chosen as Houston City Attorney

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In her weekly press conference following yesterday’s City Council meeting, Houston Mayor Annise Parker made an announcement that many have been waiting for.  Here’s the story from Katherine Driessen of the Houston Chronicle…

Longtime city lawyer Donna Edmundson has been tapped to replace City Attorney David Feldman, who is resigning, Mayor Annise Parker announced Wednesday.

Edmundson has been a lawyer with the city since 1986 and most recently served as section chief to the city’s Neighborhood Services division. She would be the first woman in the city’s history to hold the post, Parker said.

“Her experience within the city is deep and broad,” Parker said. “I’m particularly happy that her recent experience has been in the area of neighborhood protection which has been one of my top priorities. She is a hands-on person. She’s out in the field regularly.”

The post must be confirmed by Houston City Council, which is expected to occur in two weeks.  Given her long history with the city, this is unlikely to be a controversial confirmation, though with the current political toxicity surrounding the Houston Equal Rights Ordinance and the simple fact that it’s now an election year, one can never be too sure.

Though she presumably only has one year to serve in the top job, it promises to be a very busy time for the city’s legal team.  Parker was smart to choose someone from within, as they are already up to speed on the most pressing issues.  Unlike Feldman, Edmundson has spent the whole of her law career in the public sector.  It will be interesting to see how she differs in approach from her predecessor.

“I’m anxious to get to work and ready to hit the ground running” said Edmundson in comments after the Mayor’s introduction.  A good attitude to have, because the ground is moving fast.

Here’s video of the Press Conference, via YouTube…

Equality, Houston, Houston Politics

Ahead of Critical HERO Court Date, Houston City Attorney Resigns

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Just days before a pivotal court date, proponents of the Houston Equal Rights Ordinance are set to lose one of the persons most knowledgeable about the law.  Here’s more from the Houston Chronicle…

City Attorney David Feldman on Friday announced that he plans to resign next month, citing, among other reasons, that he could better defend the city’s embattled equal rights ordinance as a key witness than as a lawyer in the upcoming case.

Feldman has played a crucial and at times controversial role in Mayor Annise Parker‘s administration, alternately acting as chief negotiator, attack dog, policy wonk and spokesman.

Feldman said Friday that the main reason for his departure was his desire to work at a law firm with his son.

“The primary driving force is the desire to go back into private practice and frankly to go back into private practice at a time when I think there are people out there who I used to represent who still remember me,” Feldman said. “And my son has been after me continuously. There’s a draw there, there’s an allure, ‘Feldman and Feldman.’ I wanted to start 2015 in a new gig.”

But he acknowledged that the timing of his resignation was driven by the court date for Parker’s signature equal rights ordinance, which is set to take center stage Jan 19. Conservative critics sued the city this summer after Feldman and Parker announced that the group’s petition to send the ordinance to the ballot did not contain enough valid signatures. Opponents seeking to force the referendum largely take issue with the rights extended to gay and transgender residents under the ordinance City Council passed last May.

Despite Feldman’s statement saying that he will be a greater asset to the City from the witness chair than the Attorney’s desk, it’ very hard to see any logic in his decision to step out just as the HERO case is heating up. Unless of course he sees what myself and other have… The fight that lies ahead to protect HERO is potentially much more difficult than the fight to get the law passed.

This leaves city in a scramble not only find top notch legal representation, but also to get those persons up to speed in a precious few weeks. We’ll see what Mayor Parker and her team can come up with.

No matter the amount of animus thrown at HERO, it’s really important to remember one last point… the anti equality side’s arguments are built on lies. They may be growing rapidly in money and power, but that doesn’t make anything that they say actually TRUE. This ordinance is common-sense legislation that is already in place across the country. The facts are are squarely on the side of equal protection for all.

Off the Kuff, Brains and Eggs and Texpatriate have more.

Houston Politics

Houston Extremist Pastors Find Fame, Cause Célèbre In Fight Against Equality

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For most politically-engaged Houstonians, the first week of November was focused primarily on the big 2014 election held on Tuesday the 4th.  That is when we got to decide the future of the state by electing a Governor, Senator, Lieutenant Governor and legislature.  It was a pivotal day for state of Texas, including Houston.

However, few may guess the political importance that happened just days before that big election… events which started in the Bayou City, but could end up proving significant at the national level.  November 2nd, now known as I Stand Sunday, marks a very important turning point for the Houston Area Pastor Council. Houstonians probably know this group as those who stood in staunch opposition to the Houston Equal Rights Ordinance, passed earlier this year.  The core of the group consisted of 5 area pastors, among them Dave Welch- Executive Director of the council, and Steve Riggle of Grace Community Church.  Both especially significant for their long-held opposition to the Parker administration and full-on assault of  the LGBT equality movement in any form. Thanks to creative use of media attention, it became national news when these same pastors received subpoenas for the political work being done within their churches, and from the pulpit. Although the city has long since withdrawn the actual requests to subpoena any sermons, the national outrage that it sparked was enough to turn these local pastors and their local grievances into a world-wide cause.

It was in Riggle’s sanctuary of Grace Community Church where the I Stand Sunday rally was held.  But this rally was far more than a gathering of a few in the house of worship.  With powerful co-sponsors like the Family Research Council and American Family Association, coverage of I Stand Sunday was viewed by an estimated 1 million people all across the country.  It has literally elevated the Houston Pastors and their cause to national prominence.  The full I Stand Sunday event can be viewed here.

So much so that the Houston Area Pastor Council has now branched out to become the U.S. Pastor Council… a national organization intent on defeating the equality agenda, and upholding their said religious beliefs.  Aided by the likes of Tony Perkins, Phil Robertson, Mike Huckabee and others, what was once little more than a dream by Welch and his close confidants has now become a reality.  In 2014, the organization has expanded to a membership of over 700 pastors across the nation, with ready access to the financial and voting power of their congregants.  Indeed, the U.S. Pastor Council is well on it’s way to becoming the nation’s most powerful hate group.  

Texas Leftist has not chosen to post things like the I Stand Sunday video for promotional purposes. However, it is critically important for those that support the equality movement in Houston and beyond to know what we are up against.  If the Houston Equal Rights Ordinance is forced to a ballot, the full weight of the U.S. Pastor Council, FRC and other anti-equality groups will turn their focus to the Bayou City at a level none of us could anticipate.  After I Stand Sunday, this is not the same fight that H.E.R.O. proponents faced back in May to get the law passed.

Houston Politics

Pride Houston Board Vs… Juneteenth??

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It’s been a tough couple of months for Houston’s LGBT community.  What should be a hopeful and inspiring celebration of Pride has once again been mired in drama, thanks to secret meetings and surprise decisions from the Pride Houston Board.  Here’s the latest saga, from ABC 13….

HOUSTON (KTRK) —

The date of Houston’s 2015 Pride Parade has changed to June 27 after an uproar from some GLBT activists.

“You do not speak for me — ever,” said one woman at a meeting of about 100 at the Montrose Center Thursday night.

Her comments were directed at Pride Houston’s Board, which, in an about-face, moved the Pride Houston festivities in an effort to avoid conflict with Juneteenth celebrations. At the meeting, the board members admitted they did not fully understand the significance of Juneteenth.

“If they didn’t understand it then, they do now,” said community activist Jolanda Jones.

[…]

The same board recently received harsh criticism about moving Houston’s Pride Parade downtown from its home in Montrose. President Frankie Quijano said this date debacle is an innocent oversight and they are now moving forward.

“We decided to change it to June 27 so it wouldn’t conflict and we could respect the African American community,” said Quijano.

Texas Leftist attended the meeting this week, and to say that community frustrations were high is a gross understatement.  People were downright angry and tired of being ignored by Pride Houston.  The conflict with Juneteenth marks the second time that the board has made a major decision without input from outside organizations or their leaders.

Reasons given for moving the date?  The Pride Board claimed that the decision was originally made to attract more visitors to the Houston festivities, and not conflict with other major city pride celebrations that are held in the final weekend of June.  They then proceeded to claim total ignorance about the city’s Juneteenth traditions.

As one of Houston’s most prominent festival organizations, it seems nearly impossible for Pride Houston to be totally unaware of Juneteenth.  But even if this were the case, why would that be proper justification for them to sever their own traditions of holding Pride on the last weekend of June to commemorate the original Stonewall Riots?

Furthermore, communications sent by Pride Board member Jason Gallegos seemed to suggest little concern or respect for events being held in the African-American community.  Here’s an excerpt from a conversation obtained by Texas Leftist where a fellow community member tried to warn Gallegos that this would be a problem…

Jason Gallegos

At the community meeting, Gallegos apologized for his insensitive comments.  To their credit, the Pride Board pledged to form a Cultural diversity committee so they could become better informed and integrated within Houston’s diverse community.  At this point, all can agree that better integration is needed on all fronts.

But the verbal apologies and quickly-worded promises are not enough.  These actions have caused a severe strain among the GLBT and African-American communities… groups that were mostly united in last year’s fight for the Houston Equal Rights Ordinance.  The burden of proof now rests on Pride Houston’s Board to be a better and more sensitive community member.  As Edward Pollard, president of the Houston Black American Democrats said, “We shouldn’t have to go through all of these hurdles just to do what’s right.”

Let’s hope that Pride Houston will learn from this experience.  As the leader of another organization stated at the meeting, they can’t afford any more high-profile mistakes.