Earlier this week, Houston Mayor Annise Parker initiated subpoenas to 5 pastors in Houston. The subpoena demands that the pastors turn over "[a]ll speeches, presentations, or sermons related to HERO, the Petition, Mayor Annise Parker, homosexuality, or gender identity prepared by, delivered by, revised by, or approved by you or in your possession."
Annise Parker is the first openly gay mayor of a major city. Parker heavily supported HERO, or Houston Equal Rights Ordinance. The ordinance permits individuals to use any gender restroom they believe matches their sexual orientation. In August, local pastors and other conservative groups gathered 50,000 signatures to repeal this "Bathroom Bill." The city disregarded the petitions, claiming that half of the signatures were not legally permissible. The opponents of HERO filed a lawsuit to combat this dismissal.
In a statement on Wednesday, Senator Ted Cruz of Texas labeled the subpoenas as an "assault against religious liberty."
"This is wrong. It's unbefitting of Texans, and it's un-American. The government has no business asking pastors to turn over their sermons. These subpoenas are a grotesque abuse of power, and the officials who approved them should be held accountable by the people. The mayor should be ashamed. And we should all be proud to stand up and defend the pastors who are resisting these blatant attempts to suppress their First Amendment rights," he said.
Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) also voiced their defense of the pastors. In a brief filed against the subpoenas, ADF wrote, "These requests, if allowed, will have a chilling effect on future citizens who might consider circulating referendum petitions because they are dissatisfied with ordinances passed by the City Council. Not only will the Nonparty Pastors be harmed if these discovery requests are allowed, but the People will suffer as well. The referendum process will become toxic and the People will be deprived of an important check on city government provided them by the Charter."
Parker and her city attorney told KHOU news that the subpoenas were "overly broad," but not intended to diminish religious freedom.
"There's no question the wording was overly broad, but I also think there was some deliberate misinterpretation on the other side," said Parker.
The issue has drawn national attention and various groups from different religions and viewpoints are expressing their concern about the subpoenas.
