The Texas Attorney General is fighting an inclusive rule for LGBTQ children, a gay bar in Wisconsin shuts its doors, and preschools in Colorado want an exemption from a pro-LGBTQ rule.
AG Fights Inclusive Rule For LGBTQ Children
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is suing the Biden Administration over a rule that requires states to ensure there is designated placement for all LGBTQ children in foster care.
States are required to implement the changes by Oct. 1, 2026.
Paxton said opposing the rule is in the best interest of foster care children, according to The Texas Tribune.
“The Biden Administration is attempting to hold the Texas foster care system hostage to force unscientific, fringe beliefs about gender upon the entire country,” Paxton said in the lawsuit. “The new rule directly violates federal law and threatens to undermine our vital foster care programs, putting children who need safe, loving homes at risk.”
Gay Bar That Was Community Staple Closes
Photo via The Blue Lite gay bar, Facebook.
A beloved historic gay bar is closing for good to be rebranded into a live music venue, according to the Wisconsin Public Radio.
Despite the future absence of the bar, Kate Krause, co-chair of the Sheboygan County LGBTQ Alliance, said she knows the area’s queer community will remain as vibrant as ever.
“I think that we still need [a gay bar],” Krause said. “And if the owner is ready … to move on to something else, I think that there’s going to be the opportunity for another gay-specific space. But I also don’t think that it necessarily needs to be bars anymore.”
Preschools Want Exemption From LGBTQ-Inclusion Rule
Photo via Unsplash.
Two Catholic preschools are fighting for exemption from state non-discrimination rules surrounding sexual orientation and gender identity, according to KUNC.
In order to join Colorado’s state-funded preschool program, they would have to follow the non-discrimination rule. The parishes that run the preschools sued the state last year, since they didn’t want to have to admit LGBTQ children and their families to receive the funding.
A federal judge ruled in Colorado’s favor in June, but now the preschools are appealing.
If the preschools win the lawsuit, some children could be shut out of educational opportunities because of their parents’ identities.
A mother of a 7-year-old transgender girl said the pushback against LGBTQ children is unnecessary.
“It’s so upsetting that there’s so much hate for our kids,” the mother said. “These kids are just kids. They don’t have a political agenda.”
Though no changes are imminent, Katie Eyer, a Rutgers University law professor, said there’s a good chance this case will get its time in the spotlight.
“Whether this particular one lands on [the Supreme Court] docket remains to be seen, but it is certainly the type of case that they’ve shown quite a lot of interest in recent years,” Eyer said.
