I shuddered when I read that this guy is a judge.
AND…one of his sons has a Vietnamese girlfriend! What a jerk!
All the more reason for people to aim for a financial goal that includes not having to care about any possible inheritance, if one wants to avoid giving parents any leverage to push their “values” that one does not agree with (or other impositions).
Remind us how he does in the next election.
Not sure why it is so surprising that someone may have such attitudes (though maybe more so to put it in writing).
Probably most forum users of the boomer or X generations (age who could be parents of high school or college students) know some family members or in-laws of their, their parents’, or their grandparents’ generation who would be bothered if a family member:
- had an SO of a different race, ethnicity, or religion (or across some other social division within their ethnicity)
- were L/G/B or T
- changed religion, became more or less religious, or changed how s/he interpreted religion (e.g. emphasis on social rules versus charitable works)
Texas in a nutshell.
To be fair… this is in no way unique to Texas.
I was floored at how many eyebrows were raised by people in my sister’s small hometown (in Michigan) when my sister got engaged to her now-husband who is from Japan.
I can’t read the article but his kids would be wise to nip this in the bud as soon as they can. “OK Dad, do you want a good relationship with me as you get older? Do you want to see your potential grandchildren frequently or rarely? The answers to these questions will change depending on the threats you issue”.
No @magnetron, Houston is the most diverse city in the US, with a very long history of mayors who are either gay or persons of color. So don’t let your prejudice show so clearly.
In our “liberal” community, there is wide acceptance of interracial couples and LGTBQ. However, people still balk at marrying out of the religion. Its an interesting divide.
@ucbalumnus – It’s surprising because this is a political candidate, and his own family says he’s an open bigot with a legal document to prove it.
And while it can be fun to poke fun of Texas, let’s be real. Racism is a national disease.
I find the article fascinating and sad, as well as horrifying at the same time. It’s as much about a dysfunctional family unable to deal with a gay child as it is about racism and the fact that the brother’s H is A-A just gilds the lily. I was left with many questions - why can’t he amend the trust if he has now come to accept the Vietnamese gf, does the mother really have dementia, is Bill really just angry at being denied a loan, how come nobody ever mentioned this before when he ran in earlier elections? It seems that there is much evidence that he is a racist, but the other issues just piqued my curiosity.
I don’t practice T & E law, but I was also wondering if you could challenge that provision in court, much like the restrictive covenants in deeds (can’t sell to Jews or blacks, etc) were ultimately ruled illegal. The original deed for my house from the 1920’s says it can only be sold to those of the Caucasian persuasion. We purchased from an Asian couple.
On what basis could the inheritance be challenged, regardless of how abhorrent you may find his views. It is his money after all, and if there is a will, he can stipulate who gets it.
Thankfully, I don’t know anyone in my community of friends and family, of any age, who would have the objections that this bigoted man does.
Hebe - wills get litigated, and provisions like that get challenged all the time. I would love to see that provison litigated. Same as any contract or property covenant, provisions in wills and trusts that are illegal or run against public policy can be unenforceable. Provisions requiring marriage within one’s religion have been enforced in some states. Because racial discrimination is illegal, I would think restrictions based on race would fall into the same bucket as restrictions based on requiring the child to divorce their current spouse which were ruled to be unenforceable.
I was thinking in terms of public policy considerations, but apparently the courts still focus on personal property rights. I did some quick research and it seems that he probably can do this. The case I found involved a father whose will (not a trust) said that his sons could only inherit if they married Jewish girls who parents were both born Jewish within 7 years of the father’s death. One son challenged it and lost. It was found to be an impediment to inheritance (which is a privilege) but not to marriage, which is a constitutionally protected right. Interestingly, in another case, a Quaker woman who could only inherit if she married a Quaker man was successful. In that case, there were apparently only six potential spouses locally and the court said she didn’t have to choose from such a small cohort and she couldn’t be forced to travel around to look for a spouse. So the provision was invalidated. Thank you for motivating me to do research outside of my usual area of comfort.
Techmom beat me to the summary. 
It also brings up a good point - T+E law is very state-specific.
Why is it surprising that a political candidate has made written or spoken words in favor of or appealing to bigotry? It is not like that has not happened before, even recently (and not necessarily in Texas).
It is not like being a political candidate necessarily means that one is not a bigot.
We worried how some folks might take it when youngest son became seriously involved with his gf (mixed race - neither half “white”). Fortunately, none of our family or friends seems the least bit upset. If anyone is upset they’re keeping it to themselves or have distanced themselves from us (and I haven’t noticed). I definitely love it that way. I know bigots are out there, but they don’t need to be in my personal circles.
@techmom99, the decision in that case about requiring someone marrying within the same religion was very narrow but brought up a few good questions. Here is a good article about that case.
https://scholarlycommons.law.northwestern.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1065&context=njlsp