Google Groups no longer supports new Usenet posts or subscriptions. Historical content remains viewable.
Dismiss
[Thank Dylan Mulvaney...] Texas lesbian bar denied insurance for hosting drag shows, owner says
2 views
Skip to first unread message
Leroy N. Soetoro
May 15, 2023, 2:37:39 PM5/15/23
to
https://www.nbcnews.com/nbc-out/out-news/texas-lesbian-bar-denied-
insurance-hosting-drag-shows-owner-says-rcna83954
The owner of Houston’s only lesbian bar says her business is in jeopardy
after it was denied insurance coverage, and she’s putting the blame, in
part, on an anti-drag bill moving through the Texas Legislature.
“They outright denied us, the underwriters, because we host drag shows,”
Julie Mabry, the owner of Pearl Bar, said in an interview with NBC
affiliate KPRC of Houston.
Mabry has insurance through December, but she decided to switch agents a
few months ago and shop around for a new policy, she told KPRC. It was
during that process that her agent received the denial email, which the
agent then sent to Mabry.
“This is the first time I’ve ever gotten an email like that. I cried about
this for about a week,” said Mabry, who told KPRC that drag shows were the
first thing mentioned in the email, which outlined why the underwriter did
not want to take on the risk of insuring her bar.
Mabry did not share additional details about the underwriter or the email,
and she did not immediately respond to NBC News’ request for comment.
Mabry, who opened Pearl Bar in 2013, said the current political climate
fueled the situation she’s in, and she encouraged followers of the Pearl
Bar Instagram account to contact their legislators about anti-LGBTQ bills
in the state, including one that would restrict drag shows on public
property, on the premises of a commercial enterprise or in the presence of
a child.
The bill, Senate Bill 12, passed in the Texas Senate last month by a vote
of 20-11, and it was set to be considered by a House committee Thursday.
If the measure is signed into law, violators could be subjected to civil
penalties of up to $10,000.
“Pearl needs everyone to speak up for us so that we can stay open and HOST
DRAG SHOWS! It’s THAT serious,” a post on the Pearl Bar Instagram account
said. “We are in the final stretch of session and every voice counts in
pushing back on this and the other anti-LGBTQ legislation. We need you to
step up, be loud, and tell your legislators NO to any anti-LGBTQ+ bills.
Our state should be open to all, period.”
State Sen. Bryan Hughes, the bill’s author, did not immediately respond to
a request for comment.
Brad Pritchett, a Houston resident and the field director for LGBTQ
advocacy group Equality Texas, noted that drag shows are still legal in
Texas and said Pearl Bar's situation is a result of the "fear and panic
that lawmakers have stirred up" around the centuries-old art form.
"This situation highlights one of the most insidious consequences of all
the anti-LGBTQ+ bills in the legislature this session—most people don’t
know what’s going on," he said in an email. "It’s ludicrous to think that
lawmakers can shut down an entire industry without even changing the law.
Texans, we need you to show up to the capitol, to email your legislators,
and to make a lot of noise about what is happening in Texas.”
Texas is one of at least 16 states where legislators have proposed bills
this year seeking to restrict the audiences for drag performances and
where they can take place. Tennessee is the only state to have enacted
such a law, which a federal judge temporarily blocked from taking effect.
Bills seeking to restrict drag shows are part of a larger trend of
Republican-led bills targeting LGBTQ people in the U.S. So far this year,
more than 470 such bills have been proposed in legislatures across the
U.S., according to the American Civil Liberties Union.
Pearl Bar is one of about two dozen lesbian bars left in the U.S. and one
of only two in Texas, the other being Sue Ellen’s in Dallas. Mabry hopes
Texas will not be left with just a lone lesbian bar.
“This situation is real,” she wrote on Instagram. “I’ve tried to be as
careful as I can to keep my patrons, performers, and staff safe, but if we
stay quiet, we aren’t helping.”
--
"LOCKDOWN", left-wing COVID fearmongering. 95% of COVID infections
recover with no after effects.
No collusion - Special Counsel Robert Swan Mueller III, March 2019.
Officially made Nancy Pelosi a two-time impeachment loser.
Donald J. Trump, cheated out of a second term by fraudulent "mail-in"
ballots. Report voter fraud: sf.n...@mail.house.gov
Thank you for cleaning up the disaster of the 2008-2017 Obama / Biden
fiasco, President Trump.
Under Barack Obama's leadership, the United States of America became the
The World According To Garp. Obama sold out heterosexuals for Hollywood
queer liberal democrat donors.
President Trump boosted the economy, reduced illegal invasions, appointed
dozens of judges and three SCOTUS justices.
insurance-hosting-drag-shows-owner-says-rcna83954
The owner of Houston’s only lesbian bar says her business is in jeopardy
after it was denied insurance coverage, and she’s putting the blame, in
part, on an anti-drag bill moving through the Texas Legislature.
“They outright denied us, the underwriters, because we host drag shows,”
Julie Mabry, the owner of Pearl Bar, said in an interview with NBC
affiliate KPRC of Houston.
Mabry has insurance through December, but she decided to switch agents a
few months ago and shop around for a new policy, she told KPRC. It was
during that process that her agent received the denial email, which the
agent then sent to Mabry.
“This is the first time I’ve ever gotten an email like that. I cried about
this for about a week,” said Mabry, who told KPRC that drag shows were the
first thing mentioned in the email, which outlined why the underwriter did
not want to take on the risk of insuring her bar.
Mabry did not share additional details about the underwriter or the email,
and she did not immediately respond to NBC News’ request for comment.
Mabry, who opened Pearl Bar in 2013, said the current political climate
fueled the situation she’s in, and she encouraged followers of the Pearl
Bar Instagram account to contact their legislators about anti-LGBTQ bills
in the state, including one that would restrict drag shows on public
property, on the premises of a commercial enterprise or in the presence of
a child.
The bill, Senate Bill 12, passed in the Texas Senate last month by a vote
of 20-11, and it was set to be considered by a House committee Thursday.
If the measure is signed into law, violators could be subjected to civil
penalties of up to $10,000.
“Pearl needs everyone to speak up for us so that we can stay open and HOST
DRAG SHOWS! It’s THAT serious,” a post on the Pearl Bar Instagram account
said. “We are in the final stretch of session and every voice counts in
pushing back on this and the other anti-LGBTQ legislation. We need you to
step up, be loud, and tell your legislators NO to any anti-LGBTQ+ bills.
Our state should be open to all, period.”
State Sen. Bryan Hughes, the bill’s author, did not immediately respond to
a request for comment.
Brad Pritchett, a Houston resident and the field director for LGBTQ
advocacy group Equality Texas, noted that drag shows are still legal in
Texas and said Pearl Bar's situation is a result of the "fear and panic
that lawmakers have stirred up" around the centuries-old art form.
"This situation highlights one of the most insidious consequences of all
the anti-LGBTQ+ bills in the legislature this session—most people don’t
know what’s going on," he said in an email. "It’s ludicrous to think that
lawmakers can shut down an entire industry without even changing the law.
Texans, we need you to show up to the capitol, to email your legislators,
and to make a lot of noise about what is happening in Texas.”
Texas is one of at least 16 states where legislators have proposed bills
this year seeking to restrict the audiences for drag performances and
where they can take place. Tennessee is the only state to have enacted
such a law, which a federal judge temporarily blocked from taking effect.
Bills seeking to restrict drag shows are part of a larger trend of
Republican-led bills targeting LGBTQ people in the U.S. So far this year,
more than 470 such bills have been proposed in legislatures across the
U.S., according to the American Civil Liberties Union.
Pearl Bar is one of about two dozen lesbian bars left in the U.S. and one
of only two in Texas, the other being Sue Ellen’s in Dallas. Mabry hopes
Texas will not be left with just a lone lesbian bar.
“This situation is real,” she wrote on Instagram. “I’ve tried to be as
careful as I can to keep my patrons, performers, and staff safe, but if we
stay quiet, we aren’t helping.”
--
"LOCKDOWN", left-wing COVID fearmongering. 95% of COVID infections
recover with no after effects.
No collusion - Special Counsel Robert Swan Mueller III, March 2019.
Officially made Nancy Pelosi a two-time impeachment loser.
Donald J. Trump, cheated out of a second term by fraudulent "mail-in"
ballots. Report voter fraud: sf.n...@mail.house.gov
Thank you for cleaning up the disaster of the 2008-2017 Obama / Biden
fiasco, President Trump.
Under Barack Obama's leadership, the United States of America became the
The World According To Garp. Obama sold out heterosexuals for Hollywood
queer liberal democrat donors.
President Trump boosted the economy, reduced illegal invasions, appointed
dozens of judges and three SCOTUS justices.
0 new messages