California, banning Texas travel isn’t going to solve anything

A new Texas law allows publicly funded adoption or foster care agencies to refuse would-be parents and decide children’s care based on religious beliefs.

That’s wrong. Texans’ money shouldn’t support discrimination against LGBT parents. But so is California banning state employees’ travel to Texas over it.

Of all the rotten laws passed in the recent Texas Legislature, House Bill 3859 drew little attention. The bill by Wichita Falls Republican state Rep. James Frank was called the “Freedom to Serve Children Act,” and alllowed agencies to practice faith in care or adoptions for the 7,000 children in the child welfare system.

At the same time, Texas officials also changed a foster children’s “Bill of Rights” to eliminate rights protecting sexual orientation or gender identity.

Under California law, that makes Texas one of eight states practicing anti-LGBT discrimination and ineligible for state-funded travel.

That means government conferences and higher education gatherings won’t be held here. Nobody wants to leave out California, the third largest state.

Most of the reaction so far has involved whether California coaches and teams can play or recruit in Texas. That tells you nobody takes this very seriously.

This story was originally published June 28, 2017 at 6:04 PM with the headline "California, banning Texas travel isn’t going to solve anything."