The law firm handling Texas’ fight for marriage equality and the councilmembers who voted in favor of the San Antonio nondiscrimination ordinance will be honored by Equality Texas next month.
Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP will receive the Vanguard Award at the organization’s Spirit of Texas Brunch. The award is given annually to an “exemplary business who has demonstrated a commitment to LGBT equality in the state of Texas through fair employee policy and community advocacy.”
The firm is representing one of three Texas marriage cases in which an Austin lesbian couple and a Plano gay couple for the freedom to marry. In February, the firm’s arguments in favor of a temporary injunction to allow the Plano couple to marry resulted in a federal judge in San Antonio ruling the state marriage amendment unconstitutional. That ruling is being appealed by the state.
“Not only does Akin Gump have a stellar pro-equality record with regard to their employment policies, but they have pledged the firm’s resources to take the marriage case all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court,” Equality Texas wrote in a press release.
The organization will also recognize the Advocate Award Winners, which are the San Antonio City Councilmembers who voted in favor of the city’s nondiscrimination ordinance last year: Ron Nirenberg, Rey Saldana, Rebecca Viagran, Mayor Julian Castro, Diego Bernal, Ray Lopez, Cris Medina, and Shirley Gonzales. The ordinace passed with only three no votes coming from Elisa Chan, Carlton Soules and Ivy Taylor.
The Advocate Award is given to “outstanding public servants whose high ideals include a dedication to equal rights for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender Texans. This award will be given on an annual basis to a public figure or figures with a steadfast reputation for supporting issues of equality for all Texans.”
Equality Texas’ eighth annual Spirit of Texas Brunch is 11:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m. Sunday, June 1, at The Historic Pearl Stable, 307 Pearl Parkway in San Antonio. For tickets, go here.