Videos Show LGBTQ+ Advocates Chanting, Being Detained in Texas Capitol

Parents of transgender children were among advocates of the LGBTQ+ community who flooded the Texas Capitol on Tuesday as the state House was poised to vote on a bill that would ban gender-affirming care for minors.

The bill, Senate Bill 14 (SB 14), would prohibit transgender youth from having access to puberty blockers and hormone therapy. The state Senate passed a version of the bill this year, and House lawmakers are expected to do the same as both chambers of the Texas legislature are led by a Republican majority.

Under the bill, which would take effect September 1, trans children who have already received such medical care would also be ordered to "wean off the prescription drug over a period of time." Physicians who violate the bill risk having their license revoked in the state of Texas.

Protesters in the House gallery started chanting as soon as SB 14 was brought out to the floor, prompting House Speaker Dan Phelan to order the advocates to be cleared from the chamber, reported The Texas Tribune. In a video captured by Austin American-Statesman reporter Niki Griswold, protesters can be heard chanting as they're funneled out of the gallery: "What do we want? Trans rights. When do we want it? Now."

Griswold also reported of at least one protester being escorted out of the gallery by state police, apparently in handcuffs. In a separate video, demonstrators can be seen gathering in a hallway outside the chamber's floor while they continue to chant. Vice News correspondent Gianna Toboni said that "hundreds of people" could be heard repeating the calls.

While in the hallway, state police forcefully detained at least one additional protester, according to Griswold, who posted a video of state troopers handcuffing one while several officers pinned them to the ground. In the background, law enforcement can be heard ordering the crowd to "keep walking" as authorities clear the hallway.

According to a post from the Transgender Education Network of Texas (TENT), one of several advocacy groups that participated in Tuesday's protest, its board member was banned from entering the state Capitol for a year after displaying a banner in the building's main rotunda that read: "Let Trans Kids Grow Up."

Supporters of the bill also gathered in the House gallery Tuesday wearing "Save Texas Kids" shirts. State Representative Tom Oliverson, who is sponsoring SB 14 in the House, reposted a photo of the bill's supporters on his Twitter account, writing, "Your presence in the gallery strengthens our resolve to get this done today!"

In an email to Newsweek on Wednesday, Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) Press Secretary Ericka Miller said law enforcement was requested by Phelan to clear the House gallery "due to a group of protesters who were disrupting the proceedings on the House floor." Two demonstrators were charged, Miller added.

"All persons were directed out of the Gallery and then escorted out of the Capitol building due to ongoing protests," read the email. "Adriano K. Perez was arrested and transported to the Travis County Jail. Perez was charged with assault on a peace officer, resisting arrest and disrupting a public meeting. Evan D. Wienck was charged with assault by contact and released on site."

"No tasers or pepper spray were deployed by DPS personnel at any time," Miller added. "Once the Gallery was cleared, proceedings in the House continued."

After the protesters were escorted from the chamber, the House vote was delayed until later this week following a concern with the bill's analysis. According to a report from Brad Johnson, senior reporter for The Texan, the House Public Health Committee quickly met and fixed the error on Tuesday. The document had mistakenly cited a study from the American College of Pediatrics, which was corrected to the American College of Pediatricians.

If passed by the state House, Texas would join nearly dozens of states that have enacted or passed similar legislation restricting gender-affirming care for minors. Republican Governor Greg Gianforte of Montana signed a bill into law last week that is set to take effect October 1.

Update 05/03/2023 4:35 p.m. ET: This article has been updated with comment from the Texas Department of Public Safety.