The Barbed Wire

In a small Texas town of less than 4,000 people, one transgender teenager fought back against her school district’s transphobic dress code and won. Amid rising anti-LGBTQ+ bigotry in our state, the teen known as “Emma Doe” showed that it is possible to successfully push back against bigoted policies and make room for queer and trans young folks to be themselves.

Howdy y’all, it’s Brian Gaar with The Barbed Wire. Our government here in Texas had a busy week finding new things to be mad about: DFW Airport canceled plans for a Muslim ablution facility after Greg Abbott threatened its funding, while Texas Tech is using AI to hunt through college courses for insufficiently conservative content.

Hey y'all, it's Brian Gaar with The Barbed Wire. And good morning to everyone who woke up wondering: Can I still buy weed? Is my salad trying to kill me? Is the power grid about to be eaten by AI? Is Ken Paxton actually losing? And why is Buc-ee's dressing Aggies now?

Texas just elected its first nonbinary city council member, who is also likely the first openly nonbinary elected public official anywhere in the state. Despite all the challenges facing their city – from AI data centers sucking up resources to a rapidly worsening affordable housing crisis – and even after all the vitriol they faced during their campaign, they still believe in the future of Denton.

— 1 min read Three televised debates in the Texas U.S. Senate race now have dates, venues, and broadcast partners. Democrat James Talarico has accepted all three. Republican Ken Paxton has not confirmed any of them. Sept. 22, 8 p.m. CT — Rio Grande Valley (NBC/Telemundo/Hearst) Oct. 6, 8 p.m. CT — Dallas (WFAA/TEGNA) Oct. 13, 9 p.m. CT — Austin (KXAN/Nexstar) Paxton's campaign told the Texas Tribune he intends to debate and is close to terms with one outlet.

🎭 Dear queer stars, how can we hang onto art that brings us queer joy? Given all the slings and arrows the world is throwing at us right now, it’s easy to worry for the future of queer creativity.

Howdy y'all, it's Brian Gaar with The Barbed Wire. There are weeks when Texas feels like a state. Then there are weeks when it feels like four different TV shows airing at the same time. This week, Ken Paxton held a press conference that ended the second reporters started asking questions. New court filings cast fresh doubt on the government's account of a fatal ICE shooting in Houston.

All rockstars have at least a little bit of the undead in them, according to Caleb De Casper. “Musicians, true musicians, are vampires,” the Austin musician explained during an interview with The Barbed Wire before a recent performance. “We're night people, creatures of the night.

Howdy y’all, it’s Brian Gaar with The Barbed Wire.

🏳️‍🌈 My dear queer stars, congrats on making it through Pride Month, and welcome back to Big & Bright 🌈 ⭐ 👏! I hope you’ve rehydrated and recovered. Pride may be over, but the discourse never stops, because some folks seemed determined to reheat a very old discussion… ✋  Hold up, before we go further … have you joined The Barbed Wire yet? Please become a member now on our new and improved site! You'll support this newsletter and our reporting on LGBTQ+ Texas.