Workers in San Antonio, Texas, began removing four rainbow crosswalks in the citys Pride Cultural Heritage District on Monday after a district court judge denied a request for a temporary injunction to halt the project late last week.The removal of San Antonios rainbow crosswalks, which were originally installed in 2018 with the help of nonprofit Pride San Antonio, follows Texas Gov. Greg Abbotts (R) October 8 order directing the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) to remove any and all political ideologies from streets across the state. Related Lesbian mayor doesnt sign resolution to protect her citys rainbow crosswalk In early November, San Antonio requested an exemption from the statewide order, which TxDOT Traffic Safety Division Director George Villarreal denied in a November 25 letter, according to San Antonio Report. Prior to the TxDOT decision, out San Antonio mayor Gina Oritz Jones (D) drew criticism for comments she made in late October in which she seemed to indicate that she was unwilling to fight to maintain the LGBTQ+ street art.There are a number of ways that we can show our pride, make sure our community feels seen and heard, and we are not inviting unneeded retribution against the most vulnerable in our community, she said, alluding to Abbotts threat to deny transportation funding to cities that did not comply with his order. Insights for the LGBTQ+ community Subscribe to our briefing for insights into how politics impacts the LGBTQ+ community and more. Subscribe to our Newsletter today Last month, the city announced a plan to install rainbow sidewalk art at another intersection near the one at North Main Avenue and East Evergreen Street, where the rainbow crosswalks were set to be removed by January 15. A city spokesperson told KSAT that the new sidewalk art would recognize and support the LGBTQ+ community, while city council member Sukh Kaur said she hoped the community would recognize that the city was not just completely taking off the crosswalk without showing any kind of pride in that area.But last week, a pair of unlikely allies filed a lawsuit against the city, aiming to halt both the crosswalk removal and sidewalk art installation. As the San Antonio Express-News reports, Pride San Antonio and the Texas Conservative Liberty Forum alleged in their complaint that the citys approval of the $170,000 project without input from the public amounts to unlawful expenditure of unappropriated public funds. KSAT reports that neither group took a position on the merits of the crosswalk removal or the sidewalk art in their lawsuit. However, according to the Express-News, Pride San Antonio hopes to block the removal, while the Texas Conservative Liberty Forum aims to block the sidewalk installation. While Plaintiffs may desire different ultimate outcomes on this issue, they agree on one thing: they (and the citizens of the City) deserve the right to make their case to their elected officials, and have the issue resolved by the political and legislative processes not be silenced by bureaucracy seeking to handing the mayor a perceived political win, the lawsuit reads, according to both KSAT and the Express-News.On Friday, however, a district court judge denied the two groups request for a temporary restraining order, allowing the city to move forward with the planned removal of the rainbow crosswalks on Monday, the Express-News reported. Texas begins removing San Antonios LGBTQ pride crosswalk. pic.twitter.com/2NECf2yTN6 Breaking911 (@Breaking911) January 12, 2026But it remains unclear whether the installation of the rainbow sidewalk art will proceed. According to the paper, Deputy City Attorney Deborah Klein said City Manager Erik Walshs office will make that decision.The city is trying its best to balance the interest of the public at large and making sure that we get the funding necessary from the Texas Department of Transportation to do the projects that need to be done for the community at large while still recognizing and respecting the spirit and intent behind the crosswalks, Klein told reporters Friday, according to the Express-News.A lawyer for Pride San Antonio and the Texas Conservative Liberty Forum, meanwhile, said the two groups would consider whether or not to appeal the judges decision.Subscribe to theLGBTQ Nation newsletterand be the first to know about the latest headlines shaping LGBTQ+ communities worldwide.