A special election on November 3^rd gave Houston voters the opportunity to support Proposition 1:  Houston's Equal Rights Ordinance (HERO) a series of anti-discrimination measures protecting against discrimination not only on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity but race, age, military status, a total of 15 categories in total. Opposition to this ordinance came from conservative Republicans including Governor Greg Abbott, anti-LGBT hate groups and religious groups, in spite that precisely religious organizations would be exempted. They presented the ordinance in very simple, reductionist and incorrect terms: "No men in women's bathrooms" was their slogan. An absolute ignorance and disdain for what it means to be a transgender, and labeling this target group as potential “rapists”. One of this hate groups, the Heritage Foundation, on the words of Ryan T. Anderson, stated that “employers all compete with each other for the best employees. They have incentives to consider only those factors that truly matter for their mission.” What they are basically saying is that we don’t have to provide equal opportunities as there will be other opportunities in the free market. I cannot even think how this would sound to the leaders of the Civil Rights Movement.

The attacks were even more personal, as the Proposition was identified as the last attempt of the “lesbian Mayor” to impose her agenda.

The Proposition finally was finally struck down by Houston voters in spite of the support of national figures like Hillary Clinton, Sally Field, Greg Louganis among others. Huffington Post attributed the defeat to the “factually dishonest message” that “proved to be incredibly effective”, as voters thought they were voting to disallow men entering women’s bathrooms and were unaware of the broader nondiscrimination protections in the measure.

Lance Berkman, a retired Houston Astros star, became a spokesperson of this campaign, stating on a TV sport that he was concerned about the safety of his female family members if HERO passed.  "Proposition 1 would allow troubled men who claim to be women to enter women's bathrooms, showers, and locker rooms”. Transgenders are “troubled men” according to Berkman, so it becomes obvious he is labeling anyone that does not conform to heteronormative values he assumes to be truth, as perverted or abnormal. 

It has been over 40 years that the APA no longer consider homosexuality as a perversion or mental disorder, but some (including Governor Abbott) seem stuck in the past.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/houston-equal-rights-ordinance_5638de92e4b00a4d2e0bee4e