Love is Love. No Exceptions.

As an attorney, I’ve had the opportunity to serve LGBTQ+ clients in many matters, including adoptions. The initial interview is always similar; the prospective client calls and I can hear the concern in their voice as to whether or not the person on the other end, me, will respond with respect and dignity. I understand the fear of not knowing whether you will be accepted, in fact I feel that way each time I enter a government institution that promotes the Confederacy with statues and art! I am concerned that my client’s needs will not receive fair and judicial treatment because of social bias.

I’m happy to boast that I represent every single one of my clients aggressively and treat everyone with the same level of respect. A person should not have to worry about whether or not they will be refused service, denied access to the same opportunities, or be disrespected because of who they are or whom they love.

Let me be clear, discriminatory behavior has no business in our Country nor our County. The recent decision by the Texas State Board of Social Work Examiners to change a section of its code to now allow social workers to deny services to people based on orientation and disability is unconscionable and an alarming trend. It reeks of the Bill-of-Rights Resolution, that the Denton County Commissioners adopted last December, declaring support for the right to discriminate based on religion.

I have always been a vocal opponent of that resolution and what it says to the diverse members of our community, including LGBTQ+. This decision, by the Texas State Board of Social services, takes that resolution mentality to a higher level. Consider the rate of suicide, depression, homelessness and exploitation that members of the LGBTQ community experience as opposed to others. Research has found that attempted suicide rates and suicidal ideation among lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender (LGBT) youth is significantly higher than among the general population. The propensity to be exploited and experience homelessness is also higher amongst this population. These numbers exemplify the need for more access to social-service providers.

Yet, the State Board of Social Services, an agency that should be designed to reach this population, has adopted an exclusionary mentality. To be clear, this decision allows local social workers, within Denton County, to exclude services from this population based on their own religious ideals. The Bill-of-Rights Resolution adopted by the Denton County Commissioners gives that social worker the go-ahead.

As county commissioner I would never vote for such a discriminatory resolution. I will work to ensure that all citizens in this county have the same access to opportunity regardless of economic status, political affiliation, religious belief, or sexual orientation, just to name a few.

We are better when we work to make each other stronger and need our County Commissioners to represent all residents, aggressively and with the same level of respect.