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Texas House votes to repeal “homosexual conduct” ban

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Texas House votes to repeal “homosexual conduct” ban


The Texas House of Representatives have preliminarily voted in favor of repealing the state’s defunct ban on “homosexual conduct.”

On Thursday, lawmakers voted 72-55 to give first approval to House Bill 1738.

Why It Matters

In 2003, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down Texas’ law criminalizing gay sex in a landmark decision in Lawrence v. Texas. But anti-sodomy laws remain on the books in Texas and other states.

These laws could become enforceable if the high court, which has a 6-3 conservative majority, overturned its decision in Lawrence—the way laws banning abortion became enforceable after the court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022.

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Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas has said the court should review other precedents, including Lawrence and the court’s 2015 decision legalizing same-sex marriage.

Demonstrators in favor of LGBTQ rights rallying outside the U.S. Supreme Court in Washington, D.C., on October 8, 2019.

Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images

What To Know

State Representative Venton Jones, a gay man and Texas’ first openly HIV-positive lawmaker, said on the House floor on Thursday that repealing the law was “common sense governance.”

“Despite the clear precedent that the Lawrence v. Texas [decision] set over two decades ago, this outdated and unenforceable language remains in our penal code,” he said.

Jones added: “I’m not asking you to vote based on whether or not you agree with the Lawrence v. Texas ruling. Instead, I’m asking you to vote on a law that strengthens the fundamental civil liberties and individual freedoms that all Texans deserve.

“I’m asking you to vote for a law that upholds the principles that Texans should have the freedom and ability to make their own private decisions without unwarranted government interference.”

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The bill’s sponsors included some of the chamber’s most progressive and most conservative lawmakers. Sponsors and cosponsors included three Democrats—Jones, Joe Moody and Ann Johnson—and Republicans Brian Harrison and Dade Phelan.

Newsweek has contacted the lawmakers for comment via email.

What People Are Saying

Democratic state Representative Venton Jones told The Dallas Morning News after Thursday’s vote: “It was a great feeling. I think it gave a little bit of hope. When you have a lot of really long and bad days in this chamber, it’s nice when we can come together and get something right.”

Republican state Representative Brian Harrison said in a statement to the Texas Tribune: “Criminalizing homosexuality is not the role of government, and I support repealing it.”

Jonathan Covey, the director of policy for Texas Values, said in opposition to the measure, per the Morning News: “Some laws don’t need to be enforceable to serve a purpose. They are declarative and persuasive, and that’s what this bill does for those who read about it or know about it. It warns that this conduct is not acceptable.”

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What Happens Next

Thursday’s House vote was the furthest the effort to repeal the ban has gone in the Texas Legislature. House Bill 1738 is expected to pass a final vote on Friday before advancing to the Texas Senate, according to the Tribune.



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Texas sues Netflix for allegedly spying on kids, addicting users

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Texas sues Netflix for allegedly spying on kids, addicting users


Netflix was sued Monday (May 11) by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, who accused the streaming company of spying on children and other consumers by collecting their data without consent, and designing its platform to be addictive. Ram Nabong reports.



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Texas sues Netflix, alleges platform spied on kids and collected data

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Texas sues Netflix, alleges platform spied on kids and collected data


The state of Texas announced a lawsuit against streaming giant Netflix on Monday, accusing the company of spying on children and other consumers by collecting their data without consent and designing the platform to be addictive.

Texas claims that Netflix has falsely represented to consumers that it didn’t collect or share user data while it actually tracked and sold viewers’ habits and preferences to commercial data brokers and advertising technology companies.

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The lawsuit, filed by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, claims that “Netflix’s endgame is simple and lucrative: get children and families glued to the screen, harvest their data while they are stuck there, and then monetize the data for a handsome profit.”

The state of Texas announced a lawsuit against streaming giant Netflix on Monday. (Nikos Pekiaridis/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

“When you watch Netflix, Netflix watched you,” Texas added in the lawsuit.

NETFLIX CO-FOUNDER REED HASTINGS TO STEP DOWN, DEPARTURE IS ‘SPOOKING INVESTORS’

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NFLX NETFLIX INC. 85.39 -2.10 -2.40%

The complaint quotes comments made by former CEO Reed Hastings who said in 2020, while he was still leading the streaming company, that “we don’t collect anything,” amid questions over Big Tech companies’ data collection practices.

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Netflix was also accused of quietly using “dark patterns” to keep users watching on its platform, such as an autoplay feature that starts a new show after a different show ends.

NETFLIX RAISES SUBSCRIPTION PRICES ACROSS ALL PLANS

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton filed the lawsuit. (Cheney Orr/Reuters)

Paxton said in a press release that Netflix “has built a surveillance program designed to illegally collect and profit from Texans’ personal data without their consent, and my office will do everything in our power to stop it.”

The attorney general said he’s charging Netflix under the state’s Deceptive Trade Practices Act and seeks to require Netflix to stop the unlawful collection and disclosure of user data, require Netflix to disable autoplay by default on kid’s profiles, and to secure injunctive relief and civil penalties.

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FOX Business reached out to Netflix for comment.

Reuters contributed to this report.



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6 people found dead inside a boxcar in Texas, officials say | CNN

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6 people found dead inside a boxcar in Texas, officials say | CNN


Six people were found dead inside a cargo train boxcar in a Texas city along the southern border on Sunday, officials said.

The bodies were found in a Union Pacific train at a rail yard in Laredo, around 160 miles south of San Antonio, just after 3:30 p.m. local time, said Jose Espinoza, a public information officer with the Laredo Police Department.

The circumstances of their deaths are unknown, said Laredo police spokesperson Joe Baeza, according to CNN affiliate KGNS, and an investigation is underway.

Union Pacific operates across the border and is the only railroad that services all access points into Mexico, according to the freight company’s website.

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Temperatures on Sunday afternoon in Laredo were in the low-mid 90s, though it’s unclear whether heat was a factor.

Union Pacific said it was saddened by the incident and is working closely with law enforcement to investigate.

Laredo police said they received a call around 3 p.m. from an employee at the Union Pacific rail yard, KGNS reported. The bodies were discovered during a routine rail car inspection, police said. No survivors were found.

CNN has reached out to Laredo police for more information.

“It’s a very early phase of the investigation. There’s not a lot to reveal right now,” Baeza said, KGNS reported.

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The immigration status and ages of the deceased are not yet known, Espinoza said.

US Customs and Border Protection referred CNN to the Laredo Police Department, saying “The incident remains under investigation by Laredo Police Department and Homeland Security Investigation and Texas Rangers.”

CNN has reached out to the Department of Homeland Security, HSI and the Texas Department of Public Safety.

“It’s a very unfortunate event,” Espinoza told CNN. “It was too many lives that were lost.”

This story has been updated with additional information.

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