State Rep. Makes Waves For Refusing To Vote To Celebrate Ramadan

[#TexasPolitics365]

A Texas Republican has sparked controversy by voting against a resolution celebrating Ramadan, the Muslim holy month, in the state legislature.

A total of six members of the House failed to vote for the motion, but only State Rep. Tony Tinderholt released a statement saying his "faith as a Christian" meant he could not support the motion.

In November 2022 Dr. Suleman Lalani and Salman Bhojani became the first Muslims to be elected to the Texas Legislature. Both men serve as Democratic members of the Texas House of Representatives.

The fort Worth Star-Telegram's editorial board wrote that Tinderholt "smeared two faiths — including his own — with pathetic vote against Ramadan honor."

 His vote has also made news internationally. 

(Full story HERE.)
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#Texas House Lifts Mask Mandate For Floor, Committees

[#TexasPolitics365]

No masks will be required for State Representatives in parts of the Texas House.

Lawmakers have voted to remove the requirement that face masks be worn on the House floor and during House committee meetings.

House Resolution 333 was introduced by Representative Tom Oliverson, a Republican from Cypress. It passed with a 99 to 46 vote.

(Full story here)
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#Texas Senate Unanimously Calls For Renaming Places With "Negro" In Their Name

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All 18 Republicans in the state Senate have signed on as co-authors to legislation condemning Texas place names containing the word "Negro," rejecting a Republican Party of Texas official who urged opposition to the resolution.

They joined all 13 Democrats in supporting Senate Concurrent Resolution 29, which says the racially offensive language is "a stain on the Lone Star State" and calls for the names to be changed to reflect and honor the diversity of Texas.

A member of the Texas Republican Party's executive committee, speaking for the party, urged defeat of the resolution during a committee hearing Monday.

(Full story here.)
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State Rep. Swanson Files Bill To Recognize Pornography As A Public Health Hazard

[#TexasPolitics365]

 

A state legislator has filed a bill that would recognize pornography as a “public health hazard.”

The bill, filed by State Rep. Valoree Swanson (R-Spring), calls for a push for education and research to deal with the onerous influences of pornography.

House Concurrent Resolution 2 says Texas citizens are “exposed to sexually explicit content through a wide range of media” every day in the state. It also adds that some people who are exposed to porn are not yet teenagers.

"Besides promoting unhealthy sexual expectations, the adult entertainment industry produces media that objectify

women and children as well as depict rape and abuse; by associating violence with sexual gratification, these materials perpetuate the demand for sex trafficking, prostitution, child pornography, and

sexual abuse images," reads the resolution.

Swanson submitted a bill with nearly the same language is the last Legislative session. House Bill 781 but it died in the public health committee without going to a floor vote.

Swanson won a third term in the House in November, 2020. As of June 2017, She was a member of the Texas Freedom Caucus, a conservative legislative caucus in the state House. 

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#Austin City Council To Draft "Social Contract" For City

[#TexasPolitics365]

Culture Map Austin reports that the Austin City Council issued a directive to the city manager to compose a "social contract" for Austin. 

During its Thursday, December 10 meeting, The council asked City Manager Spencer Cronk to work with the city’s Joint Inclusion Committee to write the document, which is slated to be presented to the council by June 1, 2021. 

"A global pandemic and racial unrest have led this nation and communities across the country to an inflection point; and ... despite the polarization playing out on the national stage, the Austin community strives to rise above," reads the resolution.

The non-binding resolution will be the first of its kind in the nation, say it's backers.

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San Antonio Releases 1,000 Pages Of Hateful Messages Received By Mayor And Council

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Six months after San Antonio TV station KSAT requested the information, city officials released evidence of more than 400 hate-filled messages received by the mayor and council members in the days after they unanimously passed a resolution in May denouncing hate speech, reported KSAT 12. 

City officials released more than 1,000 pages of records. Mayor Ron Nirenberg said in a written statement that passing the resolution was the right decision, despite the influx of angry messages that it generated.

The resolution, which was put forward by Nirenberg on May 7, states that hate crimes, discrimination, and aggression against Asians and Jews were on the rise as the groups were blamed for the Coronavirus' outbreak and spread.

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