LGBTQ+

The Department of Public Safety and the Department of State Health Services are no longer following court orders to update someone's sex on driver's licenses and birth certificates. Transgender Texans and advocates say this could put their community at greater risk of being denied certain services and threaten their safety.

Texans who have secured a court order to update the sex listed on their birth certificates can no longer do so at this time, according to a new state policy that blocks transgender Texans from making these changes.

Now, Texans will not be able to change the sex on their licenses unless it is to fix a clerical error.

The students saw the move as part of a political environment that has become increasingly hostile against LGBTQ+ people in Texas.

Lubbock’s City Council upheld its decision to cut funding from the First Friday Art Trail, after weeks of backlash and calls for reconsideration from some who believe the cut signals a lack of support for the queer and art communities.

Our reporter Bishop Van Buren heard concerns from one Lubbockite over Lubbock's City Council's vote to pull funding from the popular First Friday Art Trail. And KERA’s Penelope Rivera reports three North Texas pastors have resigned or been removed from their churches in recent weeks amid allegations of sexual abuse amid a string of church leaders leaving because of "moral failings."

Tonight's First Friday Art Trail takes place less than two weeks after Lubbock city council's decision to defund the art trail due to the inclusion of queer art that it deems not family friendly. Our reporter Samantha Larned spoke with a local advocacy group. And KERA's Bill Zeeble has more on why the state of Texas is ignoring changes to Title 9 that expand protections for gender non-conforming students.

Local artists and community members say Lubbock City Council's decision to defund the First Friday Art Trail demonstrates a misunderstanding of the art displayed at the event and indicates a lack of involvement in cultural activities.

Lubbock’s city council voted to cut support for The Louise Hopkins Underwood Center for the Arts’ First Friday Art Trail, citing LGBTQ+ art displays such as drag shows, that some on the council believe should not be supported by tax dollars.

Lubbock’s annual Pride Festival featured an exhibit called Redesigning Resistance: Works on LGBTQ Rights in Lubbock. Our reporter Samantha Larned was there and has more. And KERA's Caroline Love reports the U.S. Supreme Court struck down a North Texas man's challenge to a domestic violence gun law.