A federal judge has, for the second time, struck down a Texas state law banning drag performances in settings where children may be present. On Tuesday, August 26th, 2026, US District Judge David Hittner ruled that Texas cannot enforce its drag show ban, known as Senate Bill 12 (SB 12), which was passed in March 2023.

SB 12 prohibits drag performers from dancing suggestively, wearing certain prosthetics on public property or in front of children, or presenting “sexually-oriented performance” in the presence of anyone under 18 years of age. Advocacy groups challenged the law, arguing it infringed on constitutional rights.

Judge Hittner found the law improperly restricts speech and violates the First Amendment of the US Constitution. He noted the legislation’s terms were so broad they could potentially block performers like Lady Gaga or Miley Cyrus from performing in Texas. He wrote that the open-ended phrase “prurient interest in sex” allows the law to selectively target aspects of performances that might be considered “in some sense erotic.”

Hittner had initially declared the ban unconstitutional in September 2023, but the 5th US Circuit Court of Appeals unblocked it in 2025 and sent the case back to him.

Brigitte Bandit, a plaintiff in the case who impersonates Dolly Parton, celebrated the ruling on social media, stating, “Drag is free speech, b----.” She announced plans to perform as Parton at an Austin bar on Saturday, August 29th, 2026, in honor of the decision. Parton had gifted Bandit a rhinestone guitar in 2023.

Texas’s ban was part of a broader wave of similar laws passed across several states in 2023, driven by a right-wing backlash against expanding queer and transgender rights.

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton criticized the ruling, calling it “a profoundly flawed decision that endangers our children and is an affront to Texas values.”

Sources