WACO, Texas (AP) _ When a U.S. judge struck down the Texas ban on same-sex marriage this week, the decision showed how one of the most divisive social issues in the country can affect personal relationships: The gay plaintiff in the case is an old friend of Texas' top lawyer, who has vowed to defend the ban all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Last week, a Republican congressman from Texas attempted to explain his opposition to gay marriage by offering a twisted idea that involved gay people dying on an island.

Four Republican lawmakers from Texas are readying to introduce a new bill that would prohibit cities and counties from adopting laws that would protect LGBT people from discrimination, the Texas Observer reports.

(AP) Federal immigration officials will soon open a new detention facility southwest of Dallas that includes a special unit for transgender detainees.

The Huffington Post is reporting that a Texas probate judge ruled Tuesday that the state's ban on gay marriage is unconstitutional. The ruling, however, has not resulted in the issuing of marriage licenses to same-sex couples, according to the Los Angeles Times.

A federal judge in Texas ruled that requiring employers to provide healthcare coverage that includes HIV prevention pills is a religious freedom violation. 

A Texas man is running for office in the state he previously sued for his right to marriage.

A Houston, Texas man, who was found guilty of strangling a popular drag queen to death in 2001, is scheduled to be executed on Jan. 20, the Houston Chronicle reports.

While some people giggled at Pastor Jonathan Shelley’s sermon, some were left in shock after he said “fornicators” were not welcomed in his church. 

Texas' GOP state representative recently compared gay marriage to cancer, and said that gay people shouldn't marry because they can't have children, comparing it to the losing streak of the Phoenix Suns -- but one that would never end.

(WB) Facing criticism from LGBT rights advocates and mental health experts, Texas officials reversed policy Tuesday enacted at the behest of Gov. Greg Abbott allowing social workers to turn away people from being LGBT or having a disability, according to the Texas Tribune.

In an open letter to her town of New Hope, Texas, Mayor Jess Herbst publicly came out as transgender.

Republican Texas Sen. Ted Cruz has teamed up with another member of the GOP to reintroduce an anti-gay marriage bill.

A Texas inmate scheduled to be executed this week for killing a female impersonator 15 years ago insists the death was an accident during sex and has made multiple appeals to the U.S. Supreme Court.

A unanimous decision in the Texas Supreme Court on Friday decided that while same-sex marriage is legal, same-sex couples aren’t guaranteed the same rights and benefits as heterosexuals. 

A retired United Methodist minister from Texas burned himself to death last month to protest discrimination, sexism, racism and homophobia, Dallas News reports.

A Texas veterinarian with a practice that focuses on holistic treatments that include acupuncture for animals and humans, is causing an uproar over an anti-gay message he put up on the marquee outside of his animal clinic in suburban El Paso, KFoxTV reports.

On Saturday, April 11, 1953, nearly 70 gay men packed into a small four-room house at 2117 South 19th Street in Waco, Texas, about 10 blocks from Baylor University. David Owen, a ministerial student at the Baptist school, had invited the men to attend the gathering, which was billed as an “interstate convention” that would culminate in a mock wedding ceremony for two men, one of whom would dress in drag as the bride. 

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(EDGE) North Carolina Gov. Pat McCory finally conceded Monday to losing the gubernatorial race to Democratic rival Roy Cooper, who will likely dismantle the highly controversial HB2 bill McCory signed into law.

The number of trans or non-binary people killed this year keeps rising as the total reaches 19.

LAS VEGAS - A transgender student who wanted to use the boy's bathroom and locker room at his school in Nevada has sparked a new round of debate among legislators over the issue.

(AP) A transgender Texan has posted an all-smiles photo with Gov. Greg Abbott to protest a "bathroom bill" that state lawmakers will again consider during a special legislative session beginning Tuesday.

AUSTIN, Texas — A judge has become the first to officially recognize a common-law same-sex marriage in Texas.

With their decision to not hear the case, the US Supreme Court will allow a ruling denying gay spouses equal benefits as straight couples in Texas.

HOUSTON (AP) _ Houston city leaders still don't know whether opponents of new anti-bias protections for gay and transgender residents have enough signatures to force a repeal vote in November.

An ordinance that would establish nondiscrimination protections for gay and transgender people in Houston, the nation's fourth largest city, got support this week from some heavy hitters, including the White House and high tech giant Apple.

(WB) The White House is remaining silent in the aftermath of an explosive media report that President Trump’s pick for a federal judgeship in Texas endorsed widely discredited “ex-gay” conversion therapy and called transgender kids part of “Satan’s plan.”

On the Republican front Donald Trump is still sucking up most of the oxygen, while most of the bottom tier candidates have been desperately trying to make the cut for the first debate, hosted by Fox News on August 6.