10 February 22 - 28, 2024 dallasobserver.com DALLAS OBSERVER Classified | MusiC | dish | Culture | unfair Park | Contents inclusion issues as well as universal health care, climate change and preventing gun vi- olence. The experience she’s gained from her legal practice and through her advocacy work, Butcher said, puts her in the perfect position to get what her constituents need from the federal government. “We need real advocates at the federal level and need relief in Texas and Florida and other states across the nation,” Butcher said. “I was born in Dallas, grew up in Plano, and my family has been in Texas for 200 years. I had a relative who served on the Re- public of Texas Congress back when Texas was its own country. I’m deeply connected to Texas and to Dallas. It is my home, and I feel like my home is under threat.” Butcher was 14 and at home in Plano when she first tried to come out to her fam- ily. She was met with a reaction she wasn’t hoping for and was sent to therapy in hopes that the therapist could “fix her.” “After that experience, I really decided to hold onto myself very tightly and hide it,” Butcher said. “It was clear to me that I was not accepted.” In 2013, Butcher began dating her spouse and told her that she was struggling with gender identity. She wanted her to be aware. Unlike her parents, Butcher’s spouse was accepting and decided to continue their re- lationship. When they began having children, Butcher struggled with thoughts of her chil- dren calling her “dad.” “It really hurt my heart to think about, and I just knew I had to do it [transition]. It was time, and I started taking the steps for that process,” Butcher said. Over the years, Butcher went to therapy, started seeing doctors and began hormone therapy. She said she spoke with her em- ployer about what it would be like to come out as a trans woman professionally and publicly. It was new territory for her and for the law firm where she worked. In 2019, Butcher began living openly as a woman and received overwhelming support from her family, her friends, her neighbors and her colleagues at work. Of course, that doesn’t mean that a ran- dom bigot doesn’t cross her path. “It’s Texas,” she said. “I face that every day.” As a patent litigator, Butcher handles cases from around the state. It takes her to rural areas where awkward conversations usually follow. “I truly believe that if you give people grace, ultimately people will come around and see you as a human,” Butcher said. “It’s a lot harder to hate some- one you are talking to.” In 2018, shortly before Butcher began liv- ing openly, Beto O’Rourke challenged Cruz for his U.S. Senate seat. Butcher saw more young people getting involved and more awareness of politics and the news. She be- gan to answer the question: “What can we do to influence legislation as a community?” Also in 2018, a transgender activist, Jess Herbst, announced she was seeking reelec- tion as the mayor of New Hope, Texas. A 13- year City Council member, Herbst, who came out as a transgender woman in 2017, had won every reelection but told the Observer in a 2018 report that her May 2018 reelection would be “the first opportunity to be as I am.” Herbst’s experience in that election proved that trans candidates can face a tough uphill battle when it comes to election time. Herbst was voted out of the office she had held before coming out, but in the years since she’s been somewhat encouraged by victories of some other trans candidates around the country. “It was a little painful [to lose the mayor race] to be honest,” Herbst said in a recent in- terview with the Observer. “Out here in New Hope, we’re a small community and being transgender … it was OK with the people who knew me, who came to the meetings and knew what was going on. The people who had never shown up … well, a lot didn’t know that we had a transgender mayor and all the press [about it] pissed them off.” Soon after Herbst’s mayoral loss, Butcher got involved as a community advocate and took more than 20 trips to Austin to spend time talking with legislators and working on amendments to bills that she said were harm- ful to her community. And there have been quite a few of them in recent years. More than 30 were filed in the last legislative ses- sion, including 13 bills that Equality Texas called a direct attack on transgender youths. Many of those bills died in session, but SB 14, a ban on transition-related care for kids, went into effect in early September, even though many medical experts agree that gen- der-affirming care is the best treatment for transgender children. In March 2022, the Texas Tribune reported that transitional sur- geries or irreversible procedures were not be- ing performed on minors in Texas, nor were puberty blockers or hormones being pre- scribed for prepubescent children, actions that anti-trans conservatives often tout as a danger to children in Texas. These moves by Republican state offi- cials around the country have galvanized the trans community and the broader LG- BTQ+ community, Butcher said. For example, Butcher recalled a large turnout of people at the 2023 legislative ses- sion when SB 12, the drag ban, was dis- cussed. She called it the wildest experience she has ever had. Drag queens had filled the chamber, wagging their fingers, clapping and upsetting conservatives. Butcher remembered thinking, “I hope that these people come back for trans kids next week.” That next week, Butcher said the turnout was even greater, including many of the same people who had attended the drag ban hearing. Though the ban on gender-affirming care went into effect in early September, a federal judge ruled in late September that Texas’ ban on drag performances was unconstitutional and issued a permanent injunction against it. Bills like these and their possible effect on the future inform Butcher’s path today. “People in Texas and across the country pushed a really coordinated national attack against our rights, and that is what pushed me to run for office,” Butcher said. “My kids are a driving force. I’m thinking about what this world is like for them and what it will be like in the future. I’m wanting them to be proud of being a Texan like I was proud of being a Texan. The direction where we are heading makes it less safe for everyone.” Unfair Park from p8 *First-time guests only. Valid only for select services. Additional terms may apply. Participation may vary; please visit waxcenter.com for general terms and conditions. European Wax Center locations are individually owned and operated. © 2023 EWC Franchisor LLC. All rights reserved. European Wax Center® is a registered trademark. old town shopping center 214 368 4929 preston royal 214 987 6995 addison walk 469 726 4464 casa linda plaza 214 320 4929 preston park village 214 778 1434 Keep It Glowing With a 15-Minute Wax, Your First One’s Free*
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