To the members of Dallas City Council,

On October 8th, Governor Greg Abbott issued a directive to the Texas Department of Transportation that "any and all political ideologies" must be removed from the streets, including symbols and flags, and has threatened to withhold state and federal funding if cities are not in "compliance" within 30 days. This puts public art showing solidarity with marginalized people across the state of Texas at risk of being forcibly removed.

One such display of public solidarity in Dallas is the rainbow crosswalks at the Cedar Springs and Throckmorton intersection in Oak Lawn, also known as "The Crossing." Cedar Springs in Oak Lawn has been a refuge for the LGBTQIA+ community for decades after facing police repression in queer spaces in downtown Dallas. These crosswalks are a public display of the deep roots of the queer and trans community in this area, their struggle against discrimination and the building of community with each other despite state and public repression.

Given the decades of struggle to build this space by the queer and trans community in Oak Lawn, we say: we will not go back! We will not be erased! We demand that Dallas City Council not capitulate to Greg Abbott's threats and attempts to erase our public presence in order to advance his own political agenda. We call on all Dallas City Council members to publicly denounce this directive by Abbott and take a stand against any attempt at removal of the crosswalks at the Cedar Springs crossing or art expressing solidarity with marginalized people anywhere else throughout the city of Dallas.