Equality Texas has put together the above video, set to Tears For Fears’ “Mad World,” in support of anti-bullying legislation that could reach the House floor as early as this week. The bill, sponsored by Democratic Rep. Mark Strama of Austin, would require school districts to report incidents of bullying and harassment based on, among other things, sexual orientation and gender identity.
In other madness-related legislative news, right-wingers are speaking out against a proposal to add gender identity to Texas’ hate crimes act, which currently includes only “sexual preference.” This article from the American Family Association’s OneNewsNow service features a photo of a male/female restroom sign with a question mark next to it. (Don’t ask me what this has to do with hate crimes. I guess their point is that if you’re trying to commit a hate crime against a transgender person, you won’t know which bathroom to go into???) The AFA article suggests that if gender identity/expression is added to the the hate crimes act, it will lead to a situation “reminiscent of re-education camps used in China and the former Soviet Union.” The article quotes attorney Jonathan Saenz of the conservative Free Market Foundation, who says the following:
“The judge could order that someone who commits one of these crimes has to go to an education program and really re-learn how to think and agree that they accept the other side and the view of the other side in this particular case. … And you know, these laws actually apply to juveniles, too, so you can see an intent there to start off really young trying to re-program [and] focus people — and [it’s] really a form of mind-control.”siteонлайн продвижение