On Thursday, the day before America celebrated 238 years of independence, religious-right groups submitted petition signatures to put repeal of Houston’s recently passed Equal Rights Ordinance (HERO) on the November ballot. HERO bars discrimination in employment, housing and public accommodations based on race, gender, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity and other characteristics. Opponents have focused […]
TFNEF
50th Anniversary: What Will Texas Students Learn about the Civil Rights Movement?
Fifty years ago today, President Lyndon Johnson signed into law the Civil Rights Act of 1964. That landmark legislation bars discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex or national origin. Its enactment came after decades of struggle by civil rights advocates in the face of virulent opposition — opposition that often resorted to brutality and even murder. President Johnson didn’t sweep away […]
Supreme Court’s Birth Control Decision Redefines ‘Religious Freedom’
Today the U.S. Supreme Court ruled, in a 5-4 decision, that for-profit companies like Hobby Lobby can opt out of the requirement that employers include coverage for birth control in their employee health insurance plans. We just sent out the following press release criticizing this reckless decision. SUPREME COURT’S BIRTH CONTROL DECISION REDEFINES RELIGIOUS FREEDOM […]
Houston RR Group Makes Big Sunday Church Push for Anti-Gay Referendum
An email from the far-right Houston Area Pastor Council today calls on pastors “to serve as the turning point in the anti-family tide” by using their churches this Sunday to collect signatures for a referendum overturning the city’s recently passed Equal Rights Ordinance (HERO). From the email: Pastors, that is a reminder that we can gather signatures […]
Rick Perry's Cynical Explanation
Texas Gov. Rick Perry got a lot of criticism earlier this month when he compared homosexuality to alcoholism while answering questions at an event in San Francisco: “Whether or not you feel compelled to follow a particular lifestyle or not, you have the ability to decide not to do that. I may have the genetic coding […]
