IV 
118TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. RES. 557 
Honoring the struggle, sacrifice, and contributions of the LGBTQ+ 
community and fight for equality in Texas. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JUNE 27, 2023 
Ms. CROCKETT (for herself, Mr. ALLRED, Mr. CASAR, Mr. CASTRO of Texas, 
Mr. DOGGETT, Ms. ESCOBAR, Mrs. FLETCHER, Mr. GREEN of Texas, 
and Ms. JACKSON LEE) submitted the following resolution; which was re-
ferred to the Committee on the Judiciary 
RESOLUTION 
Honoring the struggle, sacrifice, and contributions of the 
LGBTQ+ community and fight for equality in Texas. 
Whereas LGBTQI+ individuals in Texas have historically en-
countered bigotry, discrimination, hatred, and violence, 
but have struggled tirelessly to obtain equal rights and 
protection of the law; 
Whereas, the Circle of Friends was Dallas’ first gay organiza-
tion, established in 1965; 
Whereas, in 1972, an LGBTQI+ couple was denied the right 
to marry by the State, which was not illegal, but was un-
common and deemed inappropriate; 
Whereas, on June 24, 1972, Dallas, Texas, held its first un-
official gay pride parade; 
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•HRES 557 IH 
Whereas Dallas hosts the world’s largest LGBTQI+ seated 
dinner fundraiser; 
Whereas the first Rainbow LULAC chapter was formed in 
Dallas; 
Whereas Dallas has more Rainbow Crosswalks than any city 
in America; 
Whereas Dallas is the first-and-only city in America to have 
an official ‘‘pride’’ version of the City flag; 
Whereas the landmark legal case, England v. City of Dallas, 
opened municipal employment, statewide, for lesbian, 
gay, bisexual, and transgender citizens; 
Whereas the landmark legal case, Baker vs. Wade, estab-
lished the unconstitutionality of Section 21.06 of the 
Texas Penal Code; 
Whereas, in 1975, the oldest southern LGBT rights organiza-
tion, the Houston LGBT Political Caucus, was founded; 
Whereas, in 1975, the Dallas Gay Political Caucus was the 
first major gay and lesbian political organization in Dal-
las to counter the anti-gay sentiment that was building 
throughout the country at the time; 
Whereas, in 1976, Austin declared Gay Pride Celebration 
Week in the month of June; 
Whereas, in 1978, Reverend James Harris ran as the first 
openly gay candidate for Dallas City Council; 
Whereas, in 1979, the Houston Gay Pride Parade was first 
held in the community area of Neartown Houston; 
Whereas, in 1980, the first official gay pride parade took 
place in June in Dallas; 
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•HRES 557 IH 
Whereas the earliest AIDS resource center in Dallas was the 
Oak Lawn Counseling Center, founded in 1981 by Har-
old P. (Howie) Daire and Candy Marcum, which provided 
educational and patient support service; 
Whereas, in 1982, the BlackTie Dinner held the first of what 
would become many dinners to contribute to one of the 
largest sources of funding for many North Texas 
LGBTQI+ organizations; 
Whereas, in 1984, the Supreme Court decision in Gay Stu-
dent Services v. Texas A&M University upheld the re-
quirement for public universities to uphold the First 
Amendment rights of students, which require public uni-
versities to recognize student organizations aimed at gay 
students; 
Whereas the City of Dallas has comprehensive ordinances of-
fering lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender residents 
protection from discrimination in employment, housing, 
and other public areas; 
Whereas, since its founding in 1984, Dallas Design Indus-
tries Foundation Fighting AIDS has grown from a grass-
roots organization to a national foundation with chapters 
across the country; 
Whereas, in 1985, the Gay Alliance also provided support 
and representation for those with HIV/AIDS, and created 
the AIDS Resource Center, later renamed Resource Cen-
ter; 
Whereas the Dallas Buyer’s Club was created by Dallas elec-
trician Ron Woodroof in 1988 to distribute drugs not 
then available to AIDS and HIV patients to combat the 
disease; 
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•HRES 557 IH 
Whereas, in 1993, Mr. Craig McDaniel was the first openly 
gay man to be elected to the Dallas City Council, working 
to support the rights of the LGBTQI+ community 
through legislation; 
Whereas 1996 marked the first year of Dallas Black Pride, 
which has grown to be the largest celebration of its kind 
in Texas and is continually held every year in the fall; 
Whereas, in 1997, the Texas legislature prohibited the 
issuance of marriage licenses to same-sex couples; 
Whereas the 1999 Texas State Supreme Court annulled 
transsexual marriages in the State under Littleton v. 
Prange; 
Whereas, in 2001, Texas Governor Rick Perry signed the 
James Byrd, Jr., Hate Crimes Act, which criminalized 
violent or coercive action against other Texas residents 
on various immutable traits, including sexual orientation; 
Whereas the City of El Paso celebrated its first gay pride pa-
rade on June 2, 2001; 
Whereas, in 2002, the Dallas City Council passed an anti-dis-
crimination ordinance protecting LGBTQI+ persons; 
Whereas the 2003 Supreme Court landmark decision Law-
rence v. Texas nullified all remaining sodomy laws in the 
United States, which effectively preempted State law; 
Whereas Texas Penal Code 21.06 remains codified, though 
without legal effect; 
Whereas, in 2010, Ms. Annise Danette Parker became the 
first openly gay mayor in Texas elected to the city of 
Houston; 
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•HRES 557 IH 
Whereas the Texas Latino Gay Pride event began in 2014 
and is held annually every early October in the Oaklawn 
district, the first event of its kind in Texas; 
Whereas, in 2012, after President Obama’s endorsement of 
same-sex marriage, the Texas Democratic Party became 
the first southern Democratic State party to include sup-
port of same-sex marriage in its platform; 
Whereas, in 2013, El Paso County adopted its Plus One Pol-
icy, allowing for LGBTQ County employees to extend 
certain employee benefits to their domestic partners; 
Whereas, in 2015, same-sex marriage was legalized through-
out the United States; 
Whereas, in Texas, specifically, 2,500 same-sex marriage li-
censes were issued in 2015; 
Whereas, on June 26, 2015, Mr. Jack Evans and Mr. George 
Harris became the first legally recognized gay marriage 
in Dallas County; 
Whereas, between 2017 and 2021, nine trans women were 
brutally murdered in Dallas; 
Whereas the transgender community in Texas continues to 
face additional barriers compared to others on issues of 
health care and housing; 
Whereas, in 2019, the Texas legislature formed its first 
LGBT Caucus with five LGBTQI+ women, and was 
chaired by Texas State Representative Mary Gonzalez; 
Whereas, in 2022, several Texas cities, including Leander, 
Round Rock, Pflugerville and Lockhart, held their first 
public LGBTQI+ Pride events in the state’s history; 
Whereas Texas cities such as Franklin, Houston, Forth 
Worth, Dallas, San Antonio, Galveston, San Marcos, 
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•HRES 557 IH 
McAllen, El Paso, Lubbock, Waco, Corpus Christi, Abi-
lene, Laredo, Tyler, and countless others all have sched-
uled LGBTQI+ Pride celebrations in 2023; 
Whereas Texas is home to roughly 1.8 million individuals 
identifying as members of the LGBTQI+ community; 
Whereas Texas State Code V.T.C.A. 85.007 continues to dis-
criminate against the LGBTQI+ community requiring 
that ‘‘materials in the education programs intended for 
persons younger than 18 years of age must . . . state 
that homosexual conduct is not an acceptable lifestyle 
and is a criminal offense under Section 21.06, Penal 
Code’’; 
Whereas the Texas Constitution discriminates against the 
LGBTQI community, recognizing that ‘‘marriage in this 
state shall consist only of the union of one man and one 
woman’’; 
Whereas there are currently no Texas State laws to protect 
against LGBTQIA+ discrimination in family services, 
housing, banking, public accommodations, health care, 
and education; and 
Whereas public opinion polls find that a majority of Ameri-
cans support same-sex marriage and support imple-
menting anti-discrimination laws based on sexual orienta-
tion: Now, therefore, be it 
Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 
(1) honors the invaluable contributions and sac-
rifices of LGBTQI+ individuals and its community 
in Texas; 
(2) recognizes the historical significance that 
Texas has played in the LGBTQI+ movement; and 
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•HRES 557 IH 
(3) recognizes that local and State governments 
and the Federal Government must continue their 
work to honor all members of the LGBTQI+ com-
munity in Texas and the United States and ensure 
that these citizens receive all the rights, privileges, 
and protections guaranteed under the Constitution. 
Æ 
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