Last week, just one day before the new law was set to take effect, a federal judge temporarily blocked the law after the ACLU and homosexual activists sued to fight it.
The temporary restraining order from U.S. District Judge David Hittner halted the drag queen law, which will likely be struck down with a permanent court order, according to an Associated Press story.
Citing language in the new law, the judge agreed with plaintiffs the law likely violates their First Amendment rights, according to the AP story.
Jonathan Covey of Texas Values tells AFN a legal argument about constitutional rights is a ridiculous claim to make because state legislators were concerned about children, not the legality of drag queen shows.
“And when you target children, the definition of obscenity becomes very, very clear,” he insists.
What motivated many in the Lone Star State to take action can be traced to the “Garden of Eden” drag show last year in Plano, Texas. Thanks to a video by Blaze TV, which recorded the event, the public watched a drag queen lip-syncing sexually explicit lyrics and lifting his skirt while a child sat in the audience right behind him.
When that incident surfaced, legislators vowed to take action.
“Disgusting and entirely inappropriate for any child,” state Rep. Bryan Slaton, who vowed to address it, wrote on Twitter at the time.
Texas legislators did address the issue as promised and SB 12 was passed earlier this year, but critics said the legislation was ripe for a lawsuit because of its broad language targeting drag performers and businesses.
It is unclear if state legislators will address the First Amendment concerns and re-introduce legislation.
