For years gay and lesbian organizations have always had a hard fight for equal rights in the United States, Texas is without an exception. Recent law amendments to the state constitution have upturned the “Anti-sodomy statute, Chapter 21, Sec. 21.06 of the Texas Penal Code made it Class C misdemeanor to engage in deviant sexual intercourse with the same sex” and brought the State back in line with the Supreme Court Ruling equal rights for everyone. The current problem now facing Texas is about repealing the outdated state amendments and Texas Health Code to reflect the changes and helping government employees stay informed of those changes. The Texas penal code of “Homosexual Conduct” criminalizing homosexuality is a violation of Fourteenth Amendment (equal protection for everyone) was challenged for the first time in 2003. The landmark case of Lawrence V. Texas resulted in the Supreme Court striking down the Texas Homosexual Conduct Law, effectively eliminating the sodomy law not only in Texas but also in other states that still enforced them. Although the State of Texas has stopped enforcing the sodomy law after the Supreme Court decision, the statute has not been removed from the state law. In order for the statute to be removed it would need to be submitted through a repeal process, requiring a full act of legislature. Complications arise when a Democratic Party member would introduce a bill with an attachment of the repeal of the anti-sodomy law to it; a Republican Party member would then veto it. In a cbslocal.com article, “El Paso Senator Jose Rodriguez says that the state
For years gay and lesbian organizations have always had a hard fight for equal rights in the United States, Texas is without an exception. Recent law amendments to the state constitution have upturned the “Anti-sodomy statute, Chapter 21, Sec. 21.06 of the Texas Penal Code made it Class C misdemeanor to engage in deviant sexual intercourse with the same sex” and brought the State back in line with the Supreme Court Ruling equal rights for everyone. The current problem now facing Texas is about repealing the outdated state amendments and Texas Health Code to reflect the changes and helping government employees stay informed of those changes. The Texas penal code of “Homosexual Conduct” criminalizing homosexuality is a violation of Fourteenth Amendment (equal protection for everyone) was challenged for the first time in 2003. The landmark case of Lawrence V. Texas resulted in the Supreme Court striking down the Texas Homosexual Conduct Law, effectively eliminating the sodomy law not only in Texas but also in other states that still enforced them. Although the State of Texas has stopped enforcing the sodomy law after the Supreme Court decision, the statute has not been removed from the state law. In order for the statute to be removed it would need to be submitted through a repeal process, requiring a full act of legislature. Complications arise when a Democratic Party member would introduce a bill with an attachment of the repeal of the anti-sodomy law to it; a Republican Party member would then veto it. In a cbslocal.com article, “El Paso Senator Jose Rodriguez says that the state