Michael Adkison/Houston Public Media
A METRO Police vehicle faces the intersection of Westheimer and Taft as construction crews cleared the rainbow crosswalk on Oct. 20, 2025.
In her first major comments since the rainbow crosswalks were removed from the intersection of Westheimer and Taft, the chair of the Metropolitan Transit Authority of Harris County (METRO) defended the department’s handling of the removal.
“It was something that we had to do because of a mandate,” Chair Elizabeth Gonzalez Brock said during a METRO board meeting Thursday. “And whether we did it in 12 days or whether we did it in 30 days, we had a responsibility and we met our responsibility.”
Earlier this month, Gov. Greg Abbott issued an order directing the Texas Department of Transportation to ensure all cities and counties removed political messaging from roadways, including rainbow crosswalks, within 30 days. Hours later, METRO agreed to do so.
During Thursday’s board meeting, Brock indicated METRO had no other options, saying, “a lot of decisions … were made because we had to deal with the cards that we were dealt with.”
“I could not be more proud of the people that I work with that are here serving, giving and dedicating their personal time to be here to support our community,” Brock said.
RELATED: Houston residents, officials push back against rainbow crosswalk removal.
Some LGBTQ activists, as well as leaders, like City Council member Abbie Kamin, have criticized METRO for reacting so quickly to the state’s order rather than exploring other potential options or filing for an exemption.
Davis Mendoza, a Houstonian who spoke before the board on Thursday, said he was disappointed with how quickly METRO complied with the order.
“My concern is not that you followed orders, though by doing so with such unnecessary haste, you’ve added queer and trans Houstonians to y’all’s long list of collateral damage of your obedience,” Mendoza said. “My primary concern is how quickly y’all allowed this to happen, without giving LGBTQ+ Houstonians to process this removal, to grieve.”
In his initial order, Abbott threatened to withhold state funding from cities and counties that did not comply. Last week, Houston Mayor John Whitmire said Houston could not afford to lose that funding, nor could it afford to push back against Abbott and risk losing future funding.