Howdy and welcome back to your regularly scheduled program of heatstroke, hypocrisy, and high-tech overreach.
I’m The Barbed Wire senior editor Brian Gaar, reporting live from a state where the heat index is 100 degrees and civil liberties are falling fast. This week, Texas gave us a governor threatening protesters with bumper sticker slogans, a mayor canceling Pride Month in favor of a long-dead governor’s birthday, and a trans dad explaining what it’s actually like to exist in a state trying really hard to pretend he doesn’t.
Let’s dive in.
First, Gov. Greg Abbott issued a blustery warning to protesters demonstrating against ICE raids: “Peaceful protesting is legal. But once you cross the line, you will be arrested.”
While cities across Texas protested aggressive ICE raids, our governor decided to crank up the cosplay and channel his inner Punisher fanboy, adding “FAFO.” I’m sure he and his staff high-fived after owning … people exercising their First Amendment rights. Oh and less than 24 hours later, he dispatched the National Guard.
Speaking of ICE, we’ve written about Texas law enforcement agencies using AI-powered license plate readers to help the feds, even when there’s no formal agreement between them. But now Austin, San Marcos, and Dallas leaders are rethinking their contracts with the camera vendor, raising concerns about how police use the automated plate readers.
Meanwhile, in the Central Texas town of Taylor, the mayor skipped the city’s usual Pride proclamation, citing Juneteenth and … the birth month of former Governor Dan Moody, dead since 1966. Hmmm.
And finally, Kayden Coleman — a Black, queer, trans man and father of two — laid out what it’s really like to seek reproductive care in a system built to exclude him. His story is a powerful reminder: exclusion isn’t just erasure — it’s harm.
Keyboard Warrior Greg Abbott Invokes Proud Boys Slogan, Threatens Anti-ICE Protesters
By Brian Gaar
Will Cities Stop Using AI License Plate Readers? Some Are Reconsidering After Reports of ICE Searches.
By Steven Monacelli
I’m a Black, Queer, Trans Man Who Has Had Two Pregnancies. Texas Wants to Eliminate People Like Me From Healthcare Spaces
While I did not have to navigate pregnancy here in Texas, my experiences show how hard it is to receive reproductive care as a trans man.
By Kayden Coleman
It was May 2020, I was five months pregnant when I walked into the perinatal office, referral in hand, and said, “My name is Kayden Coleman and I have an appointment here at 2:00 p.m.”
The receptionist looked at me — disregarding the paperwork I was holding — and said, “There’s no way you have an appointment here because this is a women’s only facility.”
I presented her with my paperwork and without so much as an apology, the receptionist handed me additional paperwork to fill out and sent me on my way.
I mean, I get it — I am a transgender man with a full beard and top surgery. When I navigate the world, I am not outwardly perceived as someone who is transgender. So I can understand why it might have been jarring to see me standing in the medical office that day. However, it was difficult enough for me to walk into a facility that is made for, and caters to, women, let alone to explain my situation to a receptionist in front of a waiting room full of people. But what choice did I have? I am a person with a uterus. I was pregnant and in need of care.
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