Joel Burns is no stranger to conflict surrounding LGBTQ rights in Fort Worth. The first and only openly gay person to have served on Fort Worth City Council, he advocated for several initiatives and ordinance changes to further LGBTQ rights across the city.
Burns, who represented District 9 from 2008 to 2014, took on the task of improving public perception of Cowtown’s stance on LGBTQ issues. In addition to his viral “It Gets Better” video addressing gay teens in 2010, Burns worked closely with the national advocacy group Human Rights Campaign to bring up Fort Worth’s score on the organization’s Municipal Equality Index, which grades cities across the country annually on their inclusion of LGBTQ residents.
His efforts paid off when Fort Worth scored 99 points on the index in 2015 and a perfect 100 in 2016. Fort Worth continued its streak of scoring 100s until 2024, when the score dipped to 97. Four other Texas cities earned a 100 last year: Dallas, Arlington, Austin and San Antonio.
Although a three-point difference doesn’t look like much of a dip in mathematical terms, Burns and other members of Fort Worth’s LGBTQ community worry that the declining score indicates a backslide on LGBTQ inclusion. The Municipal Equality Index is more than a number on a scorecard, Burns said, it can send a valuable message to Fort Worth’s LGBTQ residents and workforce.
“It’s so important for us to not only send the message to people who might consider moving to Fort Worth and to work for Fort Worth … that they’re welcome,” Burns said. “It’s important for us as a city to send a message … to all city employees that they are valued, that they are going to be protected, and that their families are going to be valued and protected. I think having a 100 score does that.”
Reyne Telles, the city’s chief communications officer, did not return a request for comment on the city’s score. The city’s communications office also did not return a request for comment via its general media line. A January press release about the score was no longer live on the city’s website as of Jan. 27.
The Municipal Equality Index, which launched in 2012, examines how inclusive a city’s laws, policies and services are of LGBTQ people who live and work in a city, according to the Human Rights Campaign’s website.
Cities are graded on five categories: non-discrimination laws, the municipality as an employer, municipal services, law enforcement and leadership on LGBTQ+ equality. Cities can also earn flex points for each category, which are considered bonus points awarded for pro-LGBTQ efforts the Human Rights Campaign considers unrealistic for all cities to accomplish.
City’s lower score follows string of LGBTQ-related controversies
Fort Worth’s lower score follows a year marked by controversies surrounding LGBTQ equality across the city. In June, council members did not pass a proclamation recognizing Pride month after four council members refused to sign off on the recognition, which required unanimous support from council members in order to get presented.
Fallout over the issue, as well as other proclamations that failed to pass, ultimately led the city to do away with proclamations on behalf of the entire council. Now, the highest form of recognition comes exclusively from the mayor’s office.
Also in June of last year, city officials received backlash for allowing the conservative activist group Texas Latinos United for Conservative Action to host an event discussing “the impact of LGBT ideology, the social contagion of transgenderism, and the dangers of pornography” at a city-owned community center. That event — as well as a highly publicized conference hosted by Tarrant conservative group True Texas Project at the Fort Worth Botanic Garden — ultimately led city officials to overturn a longstanding ban on discriminatory events hosted on city-owned property.
At the end of the summer, two council members publicly voiced concerns about a new Human Relations Commission subcommittee designed to advise city leaders on LGBTQ issues, suggesting that city staff were pushing personal political agendas.
Council member Elizabeth Beck, the current District 9 representative, said she’s disappointed but not surprised that Fort Worth’s eight-year streak of perfect scores has ended.
“I’ve been expecting this. It’s a natural consequence of our actions as a city,” Beck said. “I expected there to be some sort of consequence to our rating as a result of what we’ve seen on council this (past) year, and it’s a shame that that we lost those points because of the direct actions of members of council — not because of something someone else did, but because of alleged leaders in our community.”
Cathryn Oakley, the Human Rights Campaign’s senior director of legal policy who founded the Municipal Equality Index, said at least one of those incidents — the failure to pass a Pride proclamation — contributed to Fort Worth losing points on the 2024 index. The organization looks at factors like participation in a Pride parade and outreach efforts to LGBTQ residents on issues that affect them.
“Because we like the documentation, we love it when it’s something like a proclamation or an ordinance or a new project — something that we can point to,” Oakley said.
Council member Charlie Lauersdorf, one of the four council members who declined to sign off on the drafted Pride proclamation in June, said he stands by his decision. The other three council members — Alan Blaylock, Michael Crain and Macy Hill — did not return requests for comment.
Lauersdorf previously said he chose not to sign off on the proclamation because he didn’t know enough about the organizations named in the proclamation to explicitly endorse them. The drafted proclamation would have recognized the work of several LGBTQ-serving organizations in Fort Worth, including LGBTQ Saves, Finn’s Place, Trinity Pride and YesterQueer.
“As stated many times before, and I will state it again, my reasons for not signing onto the proclamation, as written, had nothing to do with the LGBTQ community, but had everything to do with the organizations listed and not knowing much, if anything, about them. It has been politicized by many, including the media,” Lauersdorf said in a statement. “There was the opportunity to rewrite the proclamation to be more inclusive, but those that wrote it doubled down and looked to create division, not unity — putting politics over people.”
Oakley added that Human Rights Campaign staff compile cities’ scores based on public documentation, media reports and conversations with partners. She noted that the category “Leadership on LGBTQ+ Equality,” which Fort Worth scored five out of eight available points on, is the only subjective section of the index.
“There are lots of folks who are considered leaders in a city ecosystem, and being able to identify sort of what does leadership look like across that entire ecosystem means that good things … are going to be put into the same bag as bad things that are done by other folks,” Oakley said. “And so it definitely does turn into a little bit of a mixed bag.”
Each year, the Human Rights Campaign creates preliminary scorecards for the cities it grades, then sends those scorecards to the cities so they can provide further documentation to help improve their scores, if needed or applicable. Historically, Fort Worth has participated in the feedback process each year but did not in 2024, Oakley said. She added that it’s common for cities not to interact with the organization about their scorecards.
DeeJay Johannessen, CEO of the Fort Worth-based Help Center for LGBT Health and Wellness, said Fort Worth’s lowered score was “sad but not surprising” as the city witnessed its leaders step back from what he described as “traditional supportive engagement” of the LGBTQ community.
“This score indicates that. Sadly, it’s very shortsighted on behalf of the leadership,” Johannessen said. “What this (Municipal Equality Index) is used for is individuals who are looking to find a city to live in, to raise their family and to thrive, and also for businesses looking at where they’re going to relocate to. This is an economic development issue.”
The Help Center published a statement Jan. 22, describing the lower score as a “downgrade” for Fort Worth.
“This passivity in leadership endangers Fort Worth’s cultural and economic future,” the statement reads. “In continuing down this path, Fort Worth risks becoming less economically successful, less interesting, and less culturally vibrant.”
LGBTQ residents, city leader unsure whether score will return to 100
Burns, the former City Council member, said he understands the political pressure current council members are facing in regard to LGBTQ topics. Back in 2009, he fought a “tough battle” in convincing his colleagues to update the city’s nondiscrimination ordinance to include protections for transgender people. The ordinance was approved with a 6-3 vote from council members.
More than 15 years later, council members are facing significant pressure from their constituents as the political environment in Texas becomes more tense, he said. Many in opposition of LGBTQ equality feel emboldened to speak out, especially as Tarrant’s elected officials veer farther and farther to the right of the political spectrum, he added.
“I get that both then and now sometimes council members operate from a place of fear, and they don’t want to set off some of these extremist right-wing voices,” Burns said. “It’s that place of fear, I think, that is unfortunately pervasive when you’re an elected official, and leading by getting into the least trouble, which in my opinion, isn’t really leadership. But it’s also pragmatism, too. If you want to keep serving, you have to keep getting elected, and you can’t piss off a bunch of folks.”
Although Fort Worth’s score has remained stable for the last eight years, Oakley said it’s common for some cities’ scores to fluctuate a few points from year to year.
“97 is an exceptional score, especially … in Texas. Fort Worth has continued to be a leader on this,” Oakley said. “Certainly there are points that they are no longer getting, but that may be more clerical than anything else, and it’s very likely their score will go back up to 100 next year.”
Beck, the current council member, said she hopes to see Fort Worth’s score bounce back to 100 this year. However, council members won’t have the opportunity to support a Pride proclamation this year, as the highest form of recognition now comes solely from the mayor’s office. Individual council members can give special recognitions, which are issued by a single council member on behalf of the city.
This June, Beck hopes to see Mayor Mattie Parker, who declined to comment on the score, issue a recognition to celebrate the LGBTQ community during Pride month.
“I can’t predict the future or the behaviors of my colleagues or residents, but what I can say is that I will always fight to do what’s right by our LGBTQ community,” Beck said. “That backside is important to me. If we get back to 100, it means we’re moving in the right direction.”
Fort Worth at ‘an inflection point,’ former council member says
Felipe Gutierrez, a longtime Fort Worth resident and leader in the LGBTQ community who has drafted Fort Worth’s Pride proclamations since 2014, said he hopes council members take steps to mend relationships with the LGBTQ community that were damaged over the last year. Residents will also have the opportunity to consider who they want representing them this year, as all Fort Worth City Council seats are up for election in May, he noted.
“(I hope) that they learn about their constituents. Even though you might represent a district that you believe is all white or all Latina or all African American, the reality is that there’s a mixture of people in your districts that you represent,” Gutierrez said of current council members. “Just because you’re the elected person doesn’t mean you’re the king or the queen of your district. You also have the responsibility to learn from your constituents.”
Since June, Lauersdorf said he has taken time to learn about one of the organizations listed in the Pride proclamation, LGBTQ Saves. He said he talks often with the organization’s founder, Sharon Herrera, which has given him the opportunity to learn more about the LGBTQ community and its needs and desires. Now, he “wholeheartedly” supports LGBTQ Saves, he said.
“My door is open, and I am available should those other organizations wish to reach out,” Lauersdorf said.
Although he hates to see Fort Worth’s score dip, Burns acknowledged the three-point difference is “just something to watch” rather than cause for serious alarm. He echoed Gutierrez’s comments, saying Fort Worth’s 2025 score could be dependent on who residents vote to represent them in the upcoming council elections. It could also depend on the statewide political environment after the 2025 legislative session concludes.
Regardless of those circumstances, Burns said, he hopes to see current council members “do some soul searching” and evaluate their priorities for the city.
“This is an inflection point. It’s an opportunity for our council members to reflect and decide what kind of Fort Worth they want to have going forward and how welcoming of a Fort Worth they want to have going forward,” Burns said. “I hope that they take that time to reflect and to consider what kind of Fort Worth they want to have. It’s an opportunity, and I hope that they don’t miss it.”
Cecilia Lenzen is a government accountability reporter for the Fort Worth Report. Contact her at cecilia.lenzen@fortworthreport.org or @bycecilialenzen.
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