TEXAS - As Texans celebrate Independence Day, the state was recently ranked one of the worst in the nation for anti-LGBTQ hate crimes and extremism.
"I wasn't surprised at all. I'm sad, but I'm not surprised," said Wendell King, president of Impulse Group Houston, a non-profit that supports the LGBTQ community.
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The newly released report from the anti-defamation League and GLAAD shows that the state of Texas had the nation's third-highest number of anti-LGBTQ incidents. The report found at least 356 incidents nationwide from June 2022 to April 2023 that includes harassment, vandalism, and assault; 30 of those incidents happened in Texas.
"Although you might not directly understand what we're going through and dealing with, that doesn't take away the responsibility of knowing how it feels to be marginalized in some way," King said.
The report also shows that 138 of the incidents nationwide were related to drag shows, 11 of those incidents happened in Texas.
"They're attacking people like me, they're making legislation against us," said Queen Angelina, a local drag queen.
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Queen Angelina pointed to Senate Bill 12, which just passed this session. The bill essentially bans drag performances, making them illegal in public spaces, on commercial property, and in front of minors. Queen Angelina says legislation like this is fueling the fire for anti-LGBTQ rhetoric and hate.
"We know not everybody's going to be with us, but we all need to learn how to work together. People need to mind their business at the end of the day," she said.
As many Americans celebrated Independence Day, it's a celebration the LGBTQ community has a hard time joining in on.
"So much negative energy and hate crimes still, so it's definitely not a day of freedom; it's just a day of relaxation," King said.
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Something extremely important to note is how many anti-LGBTQ incidents go unreported, you can report incidents to the Anti-Defamation League by clicking here.