According to a press release just issued by the Texas House Democratic Caucus, “several colleagues of Rep. Nicole Collier are tearing up their ‘permission slips’ and joining her on the House floor in solidarity.”
You can watch video coverage on YouTube and on X. Although the caucus’ press release does not name the Democrats who are joining Collier on the House floor, live video streaming on YouTube shows Rep. Jessica González, the Dallas Democrat who chairs the Legislature’s LGBTQ Caucus, and other LGBTQ Caucus members among those entering the House chamber
Collier, a Fort Worth Democrat, has been detained on the floor of the House since yesterday when she refused to sign a document allowing a Texas Department of Public Safety officer to accompany her 24/7 until after the House votes on redistricting on Wednesday, Aug. 20.
House Speaker Dustin Barrows, a Republican, told every Democrat who left the state earlier this month to break quorum and at least delay the vote on the GOP’s wildly gerrymandered and racist redistricting maps yesterday that they must agree to the DPS babysitters before the doors to the House chamber would be unlocked and they would be allowed to leave.
Collier refused and spent the night sleeping at her desk on the House floor. At least one source said Collier was at some point allowed to go to her office in the Capitol, but still remained locked inside the building.
According to the Texas House Democratic Caucus’ statement, “The permission slip requirement is the latest Republican tactic to monitor and control Democratic lawmakers following their successful quorum break that stalled Gov. Abbott’s discriminatory redistricting plan and sparked a national movement.
“Republicans have completely closed the House galleries to the public, ensuring no Texans can witness Rep. Collier’s act of resistance firsthand, and have refused access to news cameras wishing to capture her protest.
The press release quotes Collier as saying, “My constituents sent me to Austin to protect their voices and rights. I refuse to sign away my dignity as a duly elected representative just so Republicans can control my movements and monitor me with police escorts.
“My community is majority-minority, and they expect me to stand up for their representation,” Collier continued. “When I press that button to vote, I know these maps will harm my constituents — I won’t just go along quietly with their intimidation or their discrimination.”
Rep. Collier is the first woman to represent Tarrant County’s House District 95, and the first woman in Texas history to chair to House Criminal Jurisprudence Committee. She is also the former chair of the Texas Legislative Black Caucus, and she currently serves on the House Appropriations and Public Health committees. Collier is an attorney, a small business owner and a working mother who “overcame significant obstacles,” and she represents a majority-minority district in Fort Worth.
— Tammye Nash
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