Although Taylor’s two parades are over — one billed as holiday procession focused on inclusivity, the other featuring family and biblical values — the controversy continues to brew.
The episode, billed by some as a culture clash or “dueling parades,” has focused a national spotlight on Taylor.
On Thursday, Dec. 8, prior to the Taylor City Council meeting, Texas Values – an organization whose members say they stand up for biblical Judeo-Christian values in Texas – held a press conference outside of City Hall.
The group expressed concerns with reports the city planned to withdraw its sponsorship — including police protection and street closures — from organizations that are not 501(c)(3) s, basically nonprofits, which includes the Taylor Area Ministerial Alliance, which operates the traditional biblical and familyvalues parade.
“We are here today to speak out against a proposed city policy item on the agenda that disqualifies and essentially bans Christians from being a part of city sponsored events, including Christmas parades,” said Mary Elizabeth Castle, director of government relations for Texas Values. “The policy would require a church or Christian nonprofit to adopt an LGBTQ sexual orientation and gender identity policy that is not even recognized in state law just so they can participate in city special events.”
In response, the city had no comment in response to the press conference.
According to the agenda packet, one of the requirements is the nonprofit organization “must have programming, administrative practices and board membership that does not discriminate based on race, color, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, citizenship, familial, disability or veteran status.”
“The city of Taylor’s new proposed policy for city events is unconstitutional and rightly causes extreme concern among the law-abiding citizens of Taylor,” said Jonathan Covey, Texas Values policy director. “You cannot take Christ out of Christmas, and yet the city of Taylor is trying to do exactly that.”
Covey said by withdrawing their cosponsorship and trying to pass the policy, the city is taking away from a parade that honors Christ to replace it with one that promotes drag performances.
Covey referenced the U.S. Supreme Court case Carson v. Makin, which concerned public education funding and religious education in Maine. The question was: If the state violated the religion clauses or equal protection clause of the Constitution by prohibiting students participating in generally available student-aid programs from choosing to use their aid to attend schools with religious curriculum.
“The U.S. Supreme Court has been very clear on this issue,” he said. “Governments cannot exclude religious organizations from receiving generally available government benefits or participating in general available government programs because of their religious character.”
Shane Allen, pastor of Crossroads Assembly of God Church in Taylor, spoke against the proposed policy during the press conference and during the Dec. 8 City Council meeting. Allen explained the controversy stemmed from a float in last year’s TAMA parade with drag queens. He said TAMA changed the language on its applications this year that stated floats must align with traditional family and biblical values, but did not solely have to be biblical floats.
“This year, ... there was a lot of pushback from Taylor Pride, who never actually applied in our Taylor Area Ministerial Alliance parade,” Allen said. “They just assumed they would have been denied, and that’s what really started this whole thing.”
He said the city created a second parade in response to Pride possibly not being accepted in the TAMA parade.
“I think the (city) parade itself is a great indicator as to where the city stands,” he said.
Allen said TAMA had 33 floats and the city parade, minus the cityorganized floats and cars, had eight or nine floats in their procession that finished the evening.
“I think that tells a lot about where Taylor stands on this position and what Taylor wants,” Allen said. “I believe Taylor wants us to go back to what it was two years ago where there was never a problem, we never had an issue with anybody in the parade.”
Allen believes a group from the LGBTQ community wants to interject sexuality into the parade.
“People are identifying themselves saying, ‘This is my sexual fetish. This is my sexual preference,’” Allen said. “It’s sexual.”
He said members of TAMA and its supporters are standing up to what they believe is inappropriate. With the city proposing new guidelines for co-sponsorship to be inclusive and nondiscriminatory, language would suggest the city is trying to do the opposite. Many of Thursday’s speakers did not see it that way.
“Is that not discriminatory and exclusive? The fact they are saying these are the rules and regulations, and if you don’t qualify, you’re out,” Allen said. “That is exclusion. That is discrimination.”
Denise Rodgers, Taylor Pride president, believes the proposed new guidelines has more to do with the changing diversity in Taylor.
“We believe the city recognizes this and is attempting to keep up with the changes and limit their liabilities,” she said. “Many of the festivals and events happening around Taylor are new or changing due to the new dynamics of people coming into town.”
According to Rodgers, the Pride Music and Art Festival required new policies and regulations the city did not have preplanned. She thinks the city is working to ensure clear guidelines for all future co-sponsored events.
“We do not believe the city is trying to exclude Christians from any events. However, Christian groups will have to follow the same guidelines as everyone else,” Rodgers said. “That’s what being fair and consistent looks like. No one gets special treatment.”
She said Taylor Pride is going to continue to serve the LGBTQ plus and allies through resources, advocacy and community-building.
During the council meeting, the agenda item for the proposed guidelines was tabled for further discussion at a later date.
The press conference is available on the Taylor Press Facebook page.
