Texts of Terror: The Bible and Bathroom Bill in Texas

Abstract

This paper discusses how faith-based advocacy organizations, such as the Texas Pastors Council, have used Genesis 1:27 to argue against the existence of a transgender identity and to defend the proposed (sb6) Texas Bathroom Bill. Highlighting the contemporary reception of this biblical text, the paper explores how Genesis 1–2 operates as a queer “text of terror.” This analysis proceeds in three parts. The first part examines how queer biblical scholars have interpreted this Genesis creation story. The second part builds on Deryn Guest’s argument, that Judges 3 is a “text of terror,” arguing that Genesis 1–2 may also lead to violence against the transgender community. The third section proposes a reading of Gen. 1:27 that contests the heteronormative gender identity endorsed in the narrative. This way of “reading forward” combats the normalizing discourse around human sexuality and reproduction often articulated in political and social arguments that use this text.