A group is suing over Houston’s city-funded “Drag Queen Story Hour,” which has drawn criticism from some in the local community.
The suit, which names the president of the library as well as Mayor Sylvester Turner, was filed on Friday after the Freed-Montrose Neighborhood branch began hosting the drag queen events in an effort to provide children with positive and queer role models, The Houston Chronicle reported.
The library director and Turner are accused of violating religious freedom by using taxpayer dollars to fund the events.
{mosads}The Hill has reached out to Turner’s office for comment.
The storytelling sessions, which began in December, are advertised as appropriate for all patrons of all ages.
“These vibrant Queens will help to instill a sense of love and acceptance in our children while encouraging them to be true to themselves,” the library’s website states.
Protesters have reportedly turned out to previous story hours with signs that read “This library perverts children” and “Drags need prayers, not public platforms.”
The group of plaintiffs who filed the suit describe themselves as “Christ followers” whose taxes help fund the library, according to the Chronicle.
Tex Christopher, one of the plaintiffs, said in the suit obtained by the Chronicle that he uses library books to homeschool his children.
Other plaintiffs include an evangelical minister and a woman who claims she got into a custody battle with her husband after he left her for a transgender woman, the Chronicle reported.
Chris Sevier is also named as a plaintiff. Sevier has filed lawsuits across the country in opposition to same-sex marriage, the newspaper noted.
He previously filed a lawsuit in Houston arguing that if men can marry other men, he should be allowed to marry his laptop.