Senate Bill 29 is on its deathbed. The anti-trans student-athlete bill missed a major deadline on Tuesday night (May 25) for the Texas House of Representatives to vote on any bills from the upper chamber. In the final hours before the midnight deadline, pro-LGBTQIA lawmakers strategically ran down the clock before SB 29 could even receive a vote. Just last week, the Trevor Project‘s 2021 National Survey on LGBTQ Youth Mental Health found (yet again) that affirming gender identity among trans and nonbinary youth – 52% of which surveyed seriously considered attempting suicide in the past year – is consistently associated with lower rates of suicide attempts. It underscores how critical – and potentially life-saving – this week’s win is for our trans and nonbinary Texan family. Many, many thanks are in order for all the folks who monitored, testified, wrote letters, and called their reps. There’s a chance the bill could come up again. Reliably anti-LGBTQIA Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick urged Gov. Greg Abbott to call a June special session to revive SB 29, among other GOP bills that faltered Tuesday night (read more). For now, though, we celebrate.
2 to Do
Neon Rainbows Dust off them boots and saddle down to Red River for DJ Boi Orbison’s (aka DJ BoyFriend) “Best of Austin” award-winning queer country hoedown. Fri., May 28, 9pm. Cheer Up Charlies, 900 Red River. No cover. cheerupcharlies.com.
Proud Voices Thee Gay Agenda and Embrace Austin host this one-of-a-kind interactive queer audio fest in celebration of Pride. Leave a rainbow trail at eight queer-owned and/or queer-friendly small businesses where you’ll discover a QR code to stream a song, poem, or auditory piece from a local queer artist. June 1-30. Multiple locations. $5. proudvoices.gay.
Q’d Up
Unofficial Splash Iron Bear The bears promise to keep you partying all weekend long with three nights of DJs, drink specials, and drag. Fri.-Sun., May 28-30. The Iron Bear, 301 W. Sixth. No cover.
April Showers Bring May Flowers Lip sync battle royale, live auction, and a raffle benefiting Project Transitions. Fri., May 28, 6-9pm. Rain on 4th, 217 W. Fourth. No cover.
Paws on 4th Pup Night Bark up the kink tree. Fri., May 28, 9:30pm. Oilcan’s, 211 W. Fourth. No cover.
The Little Mermaid Tucked takes you under the sea. Sat., May 29, 10:30pm. Highland, 404 Colorado. $5-10.
Splash Round Trip Need a ride to Hippie Hollow for Splash? Highland’s got you covered. Departure: Sun., May 30, 10am. Highland, 404 Colorado. $30.
Plant Gay Pop-Up The Austin-based plant shop is having its very first in-person pop-up. Rescheduled: Sun., May 30, 10am-2pm. Buda. plantgay.com.
Austin LGBT(QIA) Chamber First in-person luncheon in more than a year. Tue., June 1, 12pm. The County Line on the Lake, 5204 FM 2222. $50. austinlgbtchamber.com.
UnBEARable Chique and Mascara get down and dirty for Pride Month, with special guests Kara Foxx and Champagne Killer. Also streaming on Twitch! Thu., June 3, 10pm. The Iron Bear, 301 W. Sixth. No cover. twitch.tv/eatmorechique.
