State Rep. Shawn Thierry, a longtime Houston Democrat, surprised many when she recently announced her switch to the Republican Party. Thierry, who lost her primary earlier this year to Lauren Ashley Simmons, had been a member of the Democratic Party for years. However, her support for several Republican-backed bills, particularly those opposed by the LGBTQ+ community, including a measure prohibiting gender-transition care for minors, led to her decision to leave the party.
Thierry said that the Democratic Party “has veered so far left, so deep into the progressive abyss, that it now champions policies that I cannot, in good conscience, support.”
In an interview with The Defender, Thierry explained her reasons for the switch and her commitment to continuing the fight for women’s rights.
Defender: You’ve been a lifelong Democrat. Why did you decide to switch parties?
Shawn Thierry: I’ve been concerned for quite some time about the direction the Democratic Party is taking, particularly regarding policies that affect children and women. When I say women, I mean biological women, which I now feel I must clarify. I had hoped the party would reconsider its stance on issues like gender transitions for minors, allowing biological males to compete against biological women in sports, and transferring male inmates to women’s prisons based on self-identification, which has put women at risk. I also couldn’t stand by as the party pushed policies that effectively condone the castration of young boys and irreversible medical procedures for girls under 18. These are extreme positions that I cannot support, and the party’s refusal to reconsider these stances led me to leave.
Defender: You’ve said this is not the party you recognize. In what ways has it changed?
Thierry: There’s no room for dissent anymore; everyone is expected to fall in line, and that’s particularly harsh on Black members. When Hispanic members vote according to their values, they’re often given a pass. But when a Black member does the same, we’re attacked. This isn’t the Democratic Party I knew—the one my parents supported. It’s become unrecognizable, especially when Black people’s values are disregarded.
Defender: Do you believe your support for Senate Bill 14 led to your losing your seat?
Thierry: SB 14 simply states that minors must be at least 18 before undergoing procedures like genital mutilation or taking cross-sex hormones. Despite this, the opposition from powerful LGBTQIA+ interest groups has been intense. These groups have significant financial resources and influence, which they used to unseat me. But I stand by my vote. This is about protecting children from irreversible harm, and I believe most Americans would agree if they knew the full details. I encourage anyone to read the bill themselves and see that it’s about common sense.
Defender: You voted with Republicans on several other bills last session, including the virtual ban on collegiate transgender athletes and another bill regulating book content in schools that LGBTQ advocates warned would lead to censorship. Do you align with the Republican Party on other issues as well?
Thierry: There are some issues where I do align with the Republican Party. For example, I believe in economic prosperity and investing in communities to create opportunity zones. I attended a historically Black college, so I strongly support increased funding for HBCUs. I also agree that we need to get our border crisis under control. Black communities are suffering, and we’re not being given the same priority as illegal immigrants on many issues. You can see this in Chicago, where Black citizens are questioning why non-citizens are receiving more support than hardworking African Americans who built this country. No one’s giving them $10,000 and a free down payment on a house. So yes, there are certain issues where I agree with the Republicans.
But, you know, some voters focus on a single issue. I’m not one of those people—I care about multiple issues. However, if there’s one issue that should matter to every mother and father, it’s this one (gender issues). We are mutilating children, erasing women, and dismantling the progress we’ve fought for. I’ve worked to lower the maternal mortality rate for women, and now we’re seeing efforts to eliminate Title IX protections for biological women in sports.
Defender: You’ve been vocal that African Americans should open their minds to alternatives beyond the Democratic Party.
Thierry: I want every African American to understand that a vote for the Democratic Party is something that must be earned—day after day, month after month, year after year. Being a Democrat is not our birthright. They do not own us. We didn’t come out of the womb branded with a political affiliation. Last I checked, I was Black first. The Democratic Party has no right to use Black guilt to bully, threaten or shame people into being Democrats. They have work to do, and they need to earn the vote in the Black community.
I’m not the only one saying this. Go talk to barbers, truck drivers, construction workers, and blue-collar workers in my community—they agree. When people hear the truth about issues like sex changes for children and biological males in women’s prisons and sports teams, they agree. But most Democrats won’t address these issues in our communities; instead, they scream about racism and use fearmongering tactics to push their agenda.
Defender: Some would argue that the Republican Party has an agenda against reproductive rights. What are your thoughts on that?
Thierry: I don’t fully agree with that narrative. You have to look into the policies. The U.S. Supreme Court has handed the decision back to the states, and in some states, you can still have a legal abortion. So, I don’t see this as an outright attack on reproductive rights but rather as a return to state-level decision-making. There are extremes on both sides, but I’m here to focus on the issues I stand for, not on “whataboutism.”
Defender: What do you say to your constituents who claim you now believe Donald Trump should lead the party?
Thierry: I haven’t come out and said that, so people wouldn’t be able to say it about me. Everyone has to decide for themselves what their core values are. I only expect people who don’t care about children being mutilated to disagree with me. If people don’t care that biological males are competing in women’s sports, then they won’t care about what I’m saying. But it’s worth discussing because these are real legislative decisions we have to make. These aren’t hypothetical scenarios. We had to decide if the age of 18 was sufficient for making life-altering decisions, and I believe it is the most reasonable position. But when I supported that, they came after me with a vengeance, despite my alignment with Democrats on nearly every other issue. That shows me that there’s an extremist agenda at play. The real question isn’t why this is important to me; the real question is why the Democratic Party has made this their most important issue.
Defender: What do you say to Democrats who are angry about you leaving, claiming you only left because you lost your seat?
Thierry: I would tell them that their claims don’t align with the positions I’ve taken. I spoke out on issues that matter to me, and they should be more concerned about the fact that they support policies like child mutilation and sex changes for minors. If they’re angry, they should ask themselves why they support such extremist agendas. At the end of the day, this is America—I’m just one woman with one vote. They can vote how they like, and I’ll do what I believe is in the best interest of my family, our community, and our country. If they believe children can be used as political pawns, that’s on them. But I hope they can sleep at night because many people can’t even bring themselves to go on record about these issues. If they don’t believe in sex changes for minors, they should stand up and say so.
Defender: What’s next for you?
Thierry: I’m organizing a group called WAVE, which stands for Women Amplifying Voices Everywhere. It’s designed to bring together women from all backgrounds, regardless of political affiliation, to discuss issues that matter to us—our children, education and more. I’ve had so many people reach out to me, saying they agree with what I’ve said but are too scared to speak out. That needs to change. In a democracy, we should have spaces to discuss these issues openly. I hope men of good conscience will support us as well, so we can change the culture, elevate our voices, and create better opportunities for our children and for women to succeed.
