ACLU History: Lawrence v. Texas: A Watershed for Gay Rights | Amerin Civil Liberti Unn

Contents:

• TWENTY YEARS AFTER A BREAKTHROUGH TEXAS SE LNCHED A NEW ERA OF GAY RIGHTS, TRANS PEOPLE ARE STILL THE FIGHT
• ACLU HISTORY: LAWRENCE V. TEXAS: A WATERSHED FOR GAY RIGHTS
• JOHN LAWRENCE, PLATIFF GAY RIGHTS CASE, DI AT 68

TWENTY YEARS AFTER A BREAKTHROUGH TEXAS SE LNCHED A NEW ERA OF GAY RIGHTS, TRANS PEOPLE ARE STILL THE FIGHT

Jt days earlier, the two quiet men wh workg-class roots fed their nam to a pivotal moment Ameri’s gay rights movement. Supreme Court overturned Texas’ ban on sodomy, lg that stat uld not crimalize homosexualy. From left: John Lawrence, attorney Mchell Kate and Tyron Garner celebrate the landmark Supreme Court lg on a Texas anti-sodomy law durg a gay Pri para Hoton on June 28, 2003.

A ban on gay sex remas on the Texas books today. Notably, transgenr people still face discrimatn and vlence at higher rat than their lbian, gay and bisexual peers. “They were jt good, average guys jt tryg to get through life wh the hand that was alt ’em, ” said Lane Lewis, a longtime gay rights activist Hoton who intified their se as an opportuny to challenge the state’s sodomy ban.

ACLU HISTORY: LAWRENCE V. TEXAS: A WATERSHED FOR GAY RIGHTS

In 1991, a 27-year-old Hoton rint named Pl Brosard was murred a gay-bashg cint. In rponse, the Hoton Police Department anized an unrver operatn Montrose to tch gay-bashers, but the effort was quickly disntued bee of safety risks to officers. Furthermore, gay, lbian and bisexual Texans were not ee om some law enforcement officers’ disda for their muny.

JOHN LAWRENCE, PLATIFF GAY RIGHTS CASE, DI AT 68

For s leadg up to that fateful arrt of Lawrence and Garner 1998, the Hoton Police Department sometim raid gay bars and harassed those ngregatg some of the only safe spac for LGBTQ+ people at the time. Lewis, the LGBTQ+ activist, said overturng Texas’ anti-sodomy law wasn’t the end goal for the gay rights movement.