Texas House Dems: ‘this session was defined by extremism’
Members of the Texas House Democratic Caucus held a press conference on Monday to reflect on the legislative session and missed opportunities from Republican leaders in Austin. “We should have been dealing with the effects of a global pandemic that left 50,000...
Progressive local leaders announce creation of ‘Our Future Texas’
Local progressive leaders met virtually on Friday to tout the launch of Our Future Texas, a new nonprofit political action group that will work to elect and support grassroots activists and community leaders. Lawmakers and officials backing the new organization...
Texas Democrats pull out all the stops, kill voter suppression bill
On May 7th, we published a column in which I opined that one of the only remaining options for Texas Democrats eager to stop the voter suppression bill known as SB 7 was one of the most dramatic at their disposal. I called on Democrats in the House to break quorum but...
Chatting with the newest Executive Director of Battleground Texas
Battleground Texas, one of the largest organizations dedicated to flipping the state blue, recently announced they hired a new Executive Director: Terry Bermea. A native of the Rio Grande Valley, Bermea is poised to bring a new energy to the group as it prepares for a...
Austin’s camping ban was always a GOP Trojan horse
It’s been an eventful month for Texas, to say the least. Bravo’s Housewives of Dallas was embroiled in race-fueled controversy. New arrival Elon Musk hosted one of the most awkward shows in Saturday Night Live history. And the Dallas Mavericks, who haven’t won a...
Bill to quash local worker benefits passes Texas House
On Wednesday, the Texas House voted 94-52 to pass Senate Bill 14, legislation that prohibits local governments from passing laws that guarantee worker protections and benefits. The intent of the bill, Republican lawmakers and Democratic co-author Rep. Eddie Lucio III...
Texas could become a cryptocurrency hub
There’s a new gold rush in Texas. It’s not for oil or natural gas, but for cryptocurrency. Two new Texas-based Bitcoin mining facilities have been announced in just the past week. One is from Marathon Digital Holdings in partnership with Compute North, while the other...
What Texans need to know about abortion access in the wake of Senate Bill 8
Even before the legislature convened, Texas Republicans were hyping legislation that would severely restrict abortion access in Texas. Last week, Gov. Abbott made it official by signing one of the most extreme anti-abortion bills in the country. Senate Bill 8 would...
Republicans latest victim: The 1619 Project
402 years after the first group of 20 to 30 enslaved Africans were sold on American soil, the United States is still struggling to acknowledge its dark and racist history. In fact, the fight to finally address this nation’s original sin is taking place in Texas right...
The 1836 Project is a desperate effort steeped in misinformation
Growing up in Texas, you learn two things in public schools right away: Remember the Alamo, and never, ever forget the year 1836—when rugged frontiersmen like Sam Houston and Stephen F. Austin rallied an undermanned force to win their independence from an oppressive...
Anti-trans sports bill dies in Texas House
Senate Bill 29, a bill that would prohibit trans youth from playing on sports teams consistent with their gender identity, died to cheers and applause in the Texas House as the clock struck midnight on Tuesday. Despite being revived by Democratic state Rep. Harold...
A Year After George Floyd’s Death, it’s time to turn rhetoric into meaningful action
This week marks one year since the terrible public murder of George Floyd, which captured the attention of the entire country. The video of Floyd’s death sparked a summer of marches and protests as people demanded change. We witnessed countless commitments from our...
Texas anti-trans sports bill will be debated on House floor
According to Equality Texas, 30 anti-LGBTQ bills were filed this legislative session, an increase over 50 percent from the last session in 2019. And now, an anti-trans sports bill that was a legislative priority for Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, is now set for the major state...
How the Texas Legislature failed the voters of Texas
As I write this post, we are 11 days, 7 hours, 54 minutes and 16 seconds away from sine die. Sine die (pronounced “sigh-knee dye”) is that miraculous moment when the Texas Legislature finally adjourns, ending its six-month Helm’s Deep-style battle against the rights...
A Mayor for All People(s): An Interview with Deborah Peoples
The following is a transcript of the Tex Mix podcast with host Jessica Montoya Coggins and Deborah Peoples, who is currently in a runoff election for Mayor of Fort Worth. A longtime advocate and activist in Fort Worth, Deborah is also the former chair of the Tarrant...