As Americans were celebrating freedom on the nation’s 239th birthday last weekend, a county clerk in West Texas was preparing a manifesto defying the U.S. Supreme Court decision that gay and lesbian couples have the freedom to marry under the U.S. Constitution. Then on Sunday the clerk, Molly Criner of Irion County near San Angelo, posted her manifesto on a listserve […]
The Austin American-Statesman has posted a short video of TFN President Kathy Miller calling on Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton to stop obstructing the Supreme Court’s ruling on the freedom to marry for gay and lesbian couples. Kathy was speaking at a press conference on Monday at the Texas Capitol. She spoke along with leaders from the Human Rights Campaign, […]
Austin television station KXAN sent a reporter to San Saba, west of Austin, to find out why a county clerk there is refusing to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples. Apparently, the clerk originally said she didn’t have to do so because marriage for gay and lesbian couples violates her religious beliefs. But once the […]
This morning the Texas Freedom Network joined with partner organizations — Human Rights Campaign, ACLU of Texas, Equality Texas — at a press conference to celebrate Friday’s historic decision for the freedom to marry by the U.S. Supreme Court. Among the speakers at the Texas Capitol press conference was Jim Obergefell, the named plaintiff in the […]
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton on Sunday afternoon issued a formal opinion claiming that public officials in the Lone Star State can use religion as an excuse to discriminate and refuse to carry out the duties of their taxpayer-funded jobs. Paxton was replying to a request from Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick about whether county clerks, judges […]
Texas Freedom Network President Kathy Miller just issued the following statement following today’s U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling striking down state bans on same-sex marriage: “Today’s historic court decision for the freedom to marry joins other landmark rulings that have moved this country closer to the Constitution’s promise of equality under the law for all Americans. […]
The folks at the Texas Pastor Council, like other religious-righters, are growing increasingly desperate in their attacks on the freedom to marry for gay and lesbian couples. In an email today to supporters, the Pastor Council’s Dave Welch calls for “press conferences, rallies, marches and civil disobedience” if the U.S. Supreme Court strikes down bans […]
It doesn’t take long before religious-right opponents of the freedom to marry for gay and lesbian couples turn to fear-mongering about pedophilia and insist that civil laws be based on the Bible. Consider, for example, a “town hall” discussion Tuesday on San Antonio radio station KTSA. The discussion featured Daniel McNeel “Neel” Lane, the plaintiffs’ attorney in the […]
Polls show that a growing majority of Americans support the freedom to marry for gay and lesbian couples, but that’s not the case specifically among Republicans. In fact, the Texas Republican Party — largely controlled by the religious right for the past two decades — is particularly hostile to the freedom to marry. And some GOP elected officials have been […]
Tom DeLay, the disgraced former U.S. congressman from Texas and Republican House Majority Leader, thinks states can defy a possible U.S. Supreme Court ruling striking down bans on same-sex marriage. He tells the right-wing outlet Newsmax that “all hell is going to break loose” if the high court makes such a ruling this month. He goes on: “A ruling […]
