And last, the party says they oppose all efforts to validate transgender identity. They also included language that says there shouldn't be any special legal protections for gay, lesbian and bisexual people, and they oppose any criminal or civil penalties against people who oppose homosexuality. First and foremost, the party wrote that homosexuality is an abnormal lifestyle choice. But what Texas Republicans had to say about gay rights and homosexuality and transgender people really stands out. And LGBT issues came up in about five or six planks depending how you count them. In total, there are about 270 planks in the platform, by the way. What exactly was added?Ī LOPEZ: So there were only a couple of planks that covered these issues. Good morning, Ashley.įADEL: So, Ashley, let's start with this bigoted language that made it into the platform. NPR's Ashley Lopez was there and joins us now. Party leaders also excluded members of the nation's oldest conservative LGBTQ group from parts of the convention. This happened at their annual convention last week in the middle of Pride Month. Texas Republicans recently inserted homophobic and transphobic language into the state party's platform.
