“Sometimes they say it’s illegal [for prisoners to unionize], but it’s not. It’s just frowned upon. But it works.” New today from Michelle Pitcher: Texans are organizing inside and outside of prisons to empower incarcerated workers, who labor in dangerous conditions without pay.
The Texas Observer
Prison Laborers Want a Seat at the Table, Even If They’re Shackled to the Chair
Texans are organizing inside and outside of prisons to empower incarcerated workers, who labor in dangerous conditions without pay.
 #politics #prison #WorkersRights #labor #HumanRights #Texas #USpol #news
This week's top story: He’s one of Ken Paxton’s “best friends.” Angela Paxton served on his corporate board. And he stands accused of sprawling financial malfeasance.
The Texas Observer
A Jet-Setting CEO, the Paxtons, and an Alleged Massive Fraud
Ken and Angela Paxton have ties to a corporate honcho caught in a tangled web of alleged fraud involving a powerful business clan and a commercial ...
 #KenPaxton #news #politics #USpol #corruption #TXlege #Texas #fraud
For 70 years, we've been a truth-teller and a thorn in the side of the powerful. We couldn't do it without our readers. It's the final stretch of our mini-fundraiser ... We're raising $5k in 5 days, can you help us across the finish line? https://texasobserver.fundjournalism.org/give/?campaign=701UQ00000Ej3RWYAZ #fundraising #journalism #media #nonprofit
New from Lise Olsen: “One of the biggest explosions and fires in recent Texas pipeline history was apparently sparked by a disoriented SUV driver who took the wrong road out of an oversized Walmart parking lot in the #Houston-area city of Deer Park Monday. ...”
The Texas Observer
Pipeline Explosion in Deer Park Reveals Hidden Hazards Texans Face
The pipeline’s owner is “the same company that got $2.4 billion richer when Texans froze to death during Uri,” one activist points out.
 #OilAndGas #DeerPark #environment #ClimateChange #energy #GulfCoast #Texas #politics #USpol #Beryl #news
What do we owe to language in times of unimaginable violence? Poets linked to both #Palestine and Texas help show us the way.
The Texas Observer
Poetry Bridges the Gulf Between Texas and Palestine
What do we owe to language in times of unimaginable violence? Palestinian-Texan verse helps show us the way.
 #poetry #language #Texas #war #Houston #GulfCoast #MiddleEast #culture
“It was our responsibility to protect our community, our friends, our family. We realized no one is going to come save us. We’re going to have to save ourselves.” New today: Texas' biggest popular vote on #abortion post-"Roe" pits local advocates against an abortion travel ban that's part of a scheme to block the path to New Mexico.
The Texas Observer
The Far Right Wants to End Out-of-State Abortion. Amarillo Is in the Way.
Texas' biggest popular vote on abortion post-"Roe" pits local advocates against an abortion travel ban that's part of a scheme to block t...
 #News #Texas #NewMexico #RoeVWade #health #travel #Republicans #politics #USpol #elections
“On some level, she was just trying to go home.” Previously: After many months of fruitless efforts to get Jessica help, our case was finally moving, and for a couple days we were hopeful. Then the heat dome hit.
The Texas Observer
The Woman Who Died in the Heat on a San Antonio Sidewalk Was My Friend
After many months of fruitless efforts to get Jessica help, our case was finally moving, and for a couple days we were hopeful. Then the heat dome ...
 (CW: Death due to heat) #politics #USpol #HeatWave #news #environment #SouthTexas #SanAntonio #ClimateChange #health
“Firearms were used to commit 1,799 homicides in Texas in 2023—a devastating human toll. Yet guns purchased in #Texas likely contribute to even more homicidal violence south of the border that empowers fentanyl traffickers and pushes more migrants toward the United States.”
The Texas Observer
Texas Is Arming Mexico’s Gunmen
Data shows that firearms were purchased in 212 Texas counties before being trafficked to Mexico and recovered as crime guns from 2015-2022, for a t...
 #GunViolence #Mexico #border #WarOnDrugs #news
Data shows that firearms were purchased in 212 Texas counties before being trafficked to #Mexico and recovered as crime guns from 2015-2022, for a total of nearly 22,000 firearms.
The Texas Observer
Texas Is Arming Mexico’s Gunmen
Data shows that firearms were purchased in 212 Texas counties before being trafficked to Mexico and recovered as crime guns from 2015-2022, for a t...
 #GunViolence #Texas #WarOnDrugs #politics #border #USpol #CriminalJustice #news
“This cannot be how our future digital society looks like.” This week's top story: The Texas Department of Public Safety is committing to a five year, $5.3 million contract for Tangles, an AI #surveillance tool that can track cell phones without a court order.
The Texas Observer
Texas State Police Gear Up for Massive Expansion of Surveillance Tech
DPS plans to spend millions in taxpayer dollars on a controversial software, used first as part of Governor Abbott’s border crackdown, to “disr...
 #tech #privacy #police #HumanRights #news #politics #USpol #border #Texas