amna: In Texas, lgbtq rights are
under attack everywhere from the
halls of the capitol to the
streets of small towns.
On Friday, Republican governor
Greg Abbott signed into law a
ban on gender affirming care for
minors.
Republican lawmakers have also
targeted drag performers.
Laura barron-lopez is back, with
her report from one Texas town
where a fight over drag has
exposed deep divisions.
Laura: Once a month in Taylor,
Texas, lgbtq families and
supporters gather to make art,
watch movies, and show off their
talents.
It is a space for members of the
Taylor pride group to connect.
But wherever they go --
the Taylor area ministerial
alliance follows.
>> You know you know that and
you suppress that truth.
Laura: Known here as Tama, they
protest these events, in their
words, to evangelize.
And so they have.
Every month, since Denise
Rogers, who founded Taylor pride
in 2020.
>> We are just trying to exist.
They show up wherever we are
every time.
Literally just children doing
crafts and art and having fun
and existing, and they still
show up to protest just their
existence and then gathering.
Laura: Veterans and other groups
stand guard outside the events.
The Taylor police are stationed
nearby to keep the peace.
>> Taylor is changing in a big
way.
It is easy now to say that
Taylor pride is part of the
problem, because we are probably
the most noticeable change right
now.
>> Taylor is a typical rural
community in a lot of ways.
But has changed a lot, I would
say, recently.
Laura: Jeff ribble is a pastor
at the Christ fellowship church
and a member of Tama.
Unapologetic about his
anti-lgbtq beliefs.
>> Shouldn't those kids have a
place to be able to be who they
are and express their identity?
>> I'm not saying they should
not.
When I go to an event whether it
is the pride event in June or to
the library, I'm not out there
because I hate anybody.
I'm out there because I actually
love them.
And the reason I'm out there, in
love, is because I actually
believe what the scripture says.
That those lifestyles are
opposed to god, they are deemed
by god, and those who practice
those lifestyles will experience
how one day.
I believe that.
Laura: Both ribble and Rogers
have put down roots in this
railroad town, home to 17,000
people.
It is growing rapidly, with the
construction of a major Samsung
plant and rising costs in nearby
Austin driving families out of
the city.
Families like Alicia Markham.
She left Austin for Taylor into
any 14.
Earlier this year, she opened a
restaurant.
She believes most of the
community supports Taylor's
lgbtq residence.
>> I think we should be
all-inclusive here as a business
owner here, my first and
foremost mission is to serve the
community in every sense of the
word.
And that means all of the
community.
Laura: The road, and Hallock and
Salazar runs a hot dog stand
with her husband.
She was born and raised in
Taylor, and worries some
newcomers are forcing the city
too far left.
What do you think about the
lgbtq community in Taylor?
>> Very Progressive.
I love their commitment.
The only thing is I don't want
to be pushed onto people that
are not in that lifestyle.
Laura: Some Taylor residents
point to a single event when
they describe the divisions, the
town Christmas parade, which has
come down this street for
decades.
That is put Taylor on the front
line of the war on lgbtq rights.
In 2021, for the first time, the
line of Christmas floats main --
on main street included one from
Taylor pride, which carried drag
queens.
One of the performers was held
Alicia inspire.
>> We were cheered and clapped
for the entire parade.
I felt like everyone enjoyed it.
We did not hear any kind of
backlash at all, until the
following year.
It's like it exploded all over
Facebook out of nowhere.
Laura: That explosion happened
in the months leading up to the
2022 Christmas parade.
Tam,a, which put on the parade
with the city, did not want any
float with the drag queens.
>> Drag queens in a Christmas
float is not consistent with
christianity as we believe it.
Last year, in the entry forms,
we simply made a notation that
said, all entries must conform
with traditional family and
biblical values.
That created a firestorm.
Laura: Residents like Angelica
Salazar agreed with the
exclusion of drag performers
from the parade.
>> I would say keep the drag
queens out of it, because I
equate drag queens with
strippers.
And keep it age-appropriate.
Go ahead, have your float like
everybody else has their float.
But keep the drag queens out of
it.
Laura: The city and the mayor
stepped in when they found out
tam I changed the rules to
exclude Taylor pride.
>> Given we are a community that
is very open and welcoming, our
parade at its best includes
people from throughout the
community, we were put into a
difficult situation to make a
call on how we would handle the
parade.
We did not want to disrupt their
parade, but we did not want to
be discriminatory and excluding
those who wanted to participate
in the parade as they had in the
past.
Laura: Last year, there were two
back-to-back parades.
One sponsored by the city that
included Taylor pride's float
with drag queens.
And one sponsored by Tama that
didn't.
It was a short-term, local
solution.
As the tax on drag performers
increase, fueled by Republicans
on the national stage.
>> Florida is where woke goes to
die.
>> We have had enough of drag
queens gyrating in front of
children.
>>, Which taxpayer money should
go to fund drag queen story
hours on military bases?
Laura: The agenda has taken hold
in Texas.
>> I am speaking in opposition
to sv 12.
Laura: Or a ban on drag
performances in front of kids
were among the dozens of
anti-lgbtq bills introduced by
Republicans the session.
>> Drag shows are sexually
explicit and exposes kids to
sexuality and identity that
should be resolved -- reserved
for adults.
Laura: Opponents say drag is an
art form and parents should
decide what is appropriate for
their kids.
Ultimately, the explicit
reference to drag is removed
from the legislation due to fear
of legal challenges.
>> Even though it does not
specifically say drag anymore,
it is still going to be a tool
that can be used to target drag
queens and the lgbtq community
as a whole.
These people can try to get us
to go into our closets and tone
ourselves down.
And to be considered to be
normal.
But queer people have been
around since the beginning of
humankind and we are not going
anywhere.
Laura: Last month, officials
approved the city's first-ever
policy for events like parades.
It says come events cosponsored
by the city must align with
Taylor's mission and vision,
which means they will
effectively be open to everyone.
What do you think of a Christmas
parade in 2023 will look like?
>> I think the city will have a
Christmas parade and will be
inclusive of all groups.
We would love for Tama to be
involved in that as well.
Laura: That may be wishful
thinking.
>> I would like to see a Tama
parade with biblical values.
What the city does apart from
that is their business.
Laura: Denise Rogers says what
is happening in Taylor and
across Texas is about more than
parades.
>> Is really about eradicating
an entire class of people.
Laura: And, she says, the rising
ltd -- lgbtq efforts in red
states across the country are
being felt by lgbtq youth.
>> They are feeling less
supportive, feeling like there
are less resources.
We worry about that.
The kind of help they are
reaching out for, we have a lot
of scared youth for short.
Laura: Rogers says that is why
Taylor pride will not stop
holding events.
Even as people challenging their
very existence stand at the
door.
For the pbs newshour, I am Laura
barron-lopez in Taylor, Texas.
♪♪