“Right now in McAllen and other parts of this country we’re seeing what authoritarianism is about in its ugliest way.” New today: Despite a rainstorm, people packed into the 1,800 person auditorium to hear Sen. Bernie Sanders and Rep. Greg Casar offer an alternative to oligarchy.
The Texas Observer
Can Economic Populism Win Back the Rio Grande Valley?
A Vermont U.S. senator and an Austin congressman make the case in McAllen.
 #Democrats #border #SouthTexas #politics #USpol #democracy #ElonMusk #news #immigration #ICE #photography
Update: Governor Greg Abbott vetoed SB 3, the controversial, draconian #THC ban which would have shut down thousands of Texas businesses. There will be a special session to replace it with a new bill which regulates hemp products.
The Texas Observer
Reefer Madness Returns to Texas with Dan Patrick’s THC Ban
If the governor signs SB 3 into law, thousands of jobs and billions in revenue could soon disappear.
 #cannabis #news #politics #USpol #TXlege #Texas #drugs #health
From Kit @npub1npnp...ecka in the archives: “The reality is that gender-affirming medical care for trans youth is not controversial within mainstream medicine.” But that consensus hasn't stopped the New York Times from treating anti-trans organizations as experts on #transgender health.
The Texas Observer
There Is No Legitimate ‘Debate’ Over Gender-Affirming Healthcare
A recent New York Times article that experts called inaccurate and unethical now serves as evidence in Texas against transgender kids.
 #NYTimes #media #journalism #trans #SCOTUS #news #politics #USpol #health #healthcare #children
From our magazine: air so cold breath rattles down my throat like a penny tumbling in the cracked engine of a 2008 ford ranger going 75 on 45 with a broken a/c & full of candles during an ice age exhaling 2 centuries worth of disappointment.
The Texas Observer
Poem: Apocalypses, Scenario #267-590
Air so cold breath rattles down my throat like a penny tumbling in the cracked engine of a 2008 ford ranger...
 #poetry #environment #ClimateChange #poem @poetry group
From the archives: “I was really ignorant about #Juneteenth until I started this project. I just thought Juneteenth was the day enslaved people realized they had been emancipated, but there’s so much more to the story.”
The Texas Observer
A Visit to Galveston, the Birthplace of Juneteenth
Texas was the last state to receive the news that slavery had ended.
 #Galveston #GulfCoast #history #culture #Texas
In #books: “BOOM get a rat-trap/bigger than a cat-trap/BOOM!” I call out. Dad’s eyes flutter open. A long moment passes. He taps out the groove, faintly but perfectly. Drumming is no longer his livelihood. It is his lifeline.
The Texas Observer
Book Excerpt: Art Is Immortality
Suddenly, Analina dips her head. Grief seems on the verge of overwhelming her—until something visibly intervenes…
 #music #death #grief #culture #Bookstodon #military #veterans #Texas #alzheimers
Our top story: “Anti-worker attitudes, combined with minimal safety standards, combined with hotter summers means that our state will continue to lead the nation in workplace deaths and injuries until something changes.”
The Texas Observer
Will Texas Workers Ever Get a Break from the Summer Heat?
A long-awaited hearing on a proposed OSHA heat protection rule is set for June 16, but workers are uncertain to get relief under Trump.
 #politics #USpol #Texas #news #health #environment #ClimateChange
The administration is terminating leases for 11 OSHA offices, including the one in Houston, home to many of the nation’s largest oil and gas companies. While OSHA officials continue to conduct inspections, Trump has cut 10 percent of its workforce and more layoffs could be coming.
The Texas Observer
Will Texas Workers Ever Get a Break from the Summer Heat?
A long-awaited hearing on a proposed OSHA heat protection rule is set for June 16, but workers are uncertain to get relief under Trump.
 #environment #ClimateChange #news #politics #USpol #workers #labor #OilAndGas #HumanRights
From 2023: What was once a way for visitors to find charming lodgings—and a way for local property owners to make extra money—has become a global business dominated by corporate investors that threatens the #safety and character of residential neighborhoods. www.texasobserver.org/short-term-rentals-airbnb-vrbo-neighborhoods/ #economy #tech #politics #USpol #Texas #AirBNB #news
"This isn’t a removal. It’s not lawful under the Immigration and Nationality Act. It doesn’t conform to anything that was previously passed in legislation ... Essentially, he was disappeared forcefully."
The Texas Observer
Shipped to El Salvador: An Austin Immigration Lawyer on Her Teen Client's Forced 'Disappearance'
“Due process hasn’t been protected. The process that is set in place in this country that is the basis and foundation of our legal system was n...
 #politics #USpol #Texas #news #TXlege #immigration #HumanRights #ICE #ElSalvador #CECOT