The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit today (Wednesday, Feb. 25) denied a petition for rehearing in The Woodlands Pride v. Paxton, a legal challenge to Senate Bill 12, the “drag ban” law passed by the Texas Legislature and signed into law by Gov. Greg Abbott in 2023.
The appellate court initially lifted the injunction last November, but the plaintiffs in the case — Woodlands Pride and Abilene Pride Alliance —filed immediately for a rehearing.
In denying the petition for a rehearing the Fifth Circuit court also vacated the permanent injunction that has blocked this law from taking effect for more than two years.
The Texas Drag Ban is now slated to take effect for the first time on Wednesday, March 18, despite the fact that the case continues since the appellate court sent it back to district court for more analysis.
In a press release announcing the Fifth Circuit’s denial of the rehearing, the ACLU of Texas noted that the court had “emphasized that family-friendly and all-ages drag performances remain fully legal in Texas, since the drag shows at The Woodlands Pride and Abilene Pride Alliance’s events are not even ‘arguably proscribed’ by the statute.”
The ACLU press release also stressed that the Fifth Circuit judges “did not rule on the constitutionality of the law’s restrictions on ‘sexually oriented performances,’ but instead sent the case “back to the district court for more analysis based on recent Supreme Court cases.”
Brian Klosterboer, senior staff attorney at the ACLU of Texas, said in a written statement included in the press release, “The 5th Circuit’s decision does not fully address the district court’s well-reasoned analysis for why the Texas Drag Ban is unconstitutional under five independent grounds. While allowing this law to take effect for the first time, the 5th Circuit made clear that family-friendly and all-ages drag shows remain fully legal in Texas.”
Klosterboer added, “The law’s vague and sweeping provisions still create a harmful chilling effect for drag artists and those who support them, while also threatening many types of performing arts cherished here in Texas, from theater to ballet to professional wrestling.
“Because this law remains unconstitutional, we look forward to continuing this case before the district court and encourage anyone who is impacted by the law to reach out to us. Drag in Texas is here to stay,” he said.
Read the ACLU of Texas’ fact sheet on the drag ban law for more background.