AUSTIN — The Texas Senate on Wednesday passed two bills that will ban performing drag in front of minors.
Senate Bill 12 would criminalize drag shows or any other performance deemed overtly sexual if they are held in front of or could occur in front of a minor. This would include businesses such as restaurants and bars and would result in a $10,000 fine.
Senate Bill 1601 would prohibit libraries from hosting drag events, including drag story hours, and would threaten public funding.
“I know that all of us can agree that children should not be exposed to sexually explicit material,” said Mineola Republican state Sen. Bryan Hughes, author of both bills. “The purpose of Senate Bill 12 is to protect children from sexually explicit performances.”
Drag is when a person, usually male, dresses in clothing and makeup to exaggerate a specific gender identity. It is considered an art form in the LGBTQ+ community.
Despite thousands protesting at the Capitol and providing hours of public testimony against the bills, SB 12 passed 20-11 and SB 1601 passed 19-10, with two senators present but not voting.
Both bills now head to the House for consideration.
“To be clear, these kinds of sexual performances in front of children are not currently covered by law,” Hughes said. “(SB 1601) is about protecting minors. This bill says that minors should not be exposed to sexual performances.”
Democratic Sen. Roland Gutierrez, of San Antonio, was rebuked on Tuesday during floor debates on the bills for asking lawmakers why they continue to push these bills on drag shows in the name of protecting children when they have done nothing to curb gun violence.
Other Democratic senators, including San Antonio state Sen. Jose Menendez and Austin state Sen. Sara Eckhardt, pushed back on SB 1601, saying it was overly broad to the point where a woman dressed as popular fictional characters Gandalf from “Lord of the Rings” or Harry Potter while at a library story hour would be in violation of the law.
Menendez said he and other Senate Democrats would have voted favorably toward SB 1601 if Hughes accepted an amendment that stated the fund would only be withheld from story times that appeal to the “prurient interest in sex.”
“Speaking personally, and probably for many of my colleagues, we’re concerned about the drafting of the bill,” Menendez said before SB 1601’s final passage. “It’s overly broad, and we think it may have consequences far beyond addressing the behavior and practices that it’s intended to address.”
The passage of SB 12 was a win for Republican Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, who named the bill a top priority this legislative session.
He said the bill was a priority because “someone must fight back against the radical left’s degradation of our society and values.”
Anti-LGBTQ legislation has been on the rise this session, with more than 140 such bills filed. In previous sessions, as many as 30 bills were typically deemed anti-LGBTQ.
Earlier this week, the Senate also passed a bill that would bar transgender youth access to puberty blockers and hormones.
Ricardo Martinez, CEO for the LGBTQ organization Equality Texas, said drag is “not a dirty secret.”
“Thirty years ago, when Robin Williams donned drag for the filming of ‘Mrs. Doubtfire,’ the Motion Picture Association of America rated the film PG – the same rating that most family-friendly Disney movies receive. It wasn’t relegated to porn shops or black markets because there is nothing inappropriate about drag. Far from it. In fact, the artistry of the makeup and the performance won several awards. Are we trying to protect kids from the likes of Robin Williams? If so, I fear for the bleak and unhappy future of our next generation,” he said in a statement.
“Just like not every movie starring Robin Williams was rated PG, not every drag performance is family-friendly. But we trust Texas parents to look at the movie rating and decide what is safe. The same should be true of drag performances,” he added.
Gwenivere Rose, a trans woman living in Texas, called the passage of the laws “harmful” and “bigoted.”
“For many people, it’s very hard to come out as trans,” Rose said. “People trying to force you back in the closet or trying to deny your existence or keep you from living, it’s very hurtful.”