News
How Teach for America Helped Set Up James Talarico's Political Rise
6+ hour, 15+ min ago (793+ words) The prestigious education group is more than a shiny r'sum' item. For the Democratic Senate candidate, it was an incubator for his rapid political ascent. April 9, 2026, 9: 15 AM, CDT Matthew Chesnut is a high school social studies teacher and journalism adviser…...
School Vouchers Are What We Thought They Were
6+ hour, 31+ min ago (496+ words) The nascent school voucher program is, predictably, burdened by Republicans" insistence on religious discrimination'and likely set to benefit those already outside the public school system. April 9, 2026, 9: 00 AM, CDT Justin Miller is the news and politics editor for the Texas Observer....
A Wall That's Worth Defending
3+ week, 2+ day ago (432+ words) Some evangelical Christians are hammering away at the very church-state separation that allowed them, and other believers, to first flourish in America. by David R. Brockman March 17, 2026, 9: 01 AM, CDT David R. Brockman, Ph. D. , is an author, Christian theologian, and nonresident scholar in…...
Lies, Damned Lies, and American Citizenship
4+ week, 2+ day ago (286+ words) We shouldn't ignore the protofascism brewing on the JD Vance-aligned right. But the status quo ante isn't good enough either. March 10, 2026, 9: 20 AM, CDT A version of this story ran in the March/ April 2026 issue. In widely quoted speeches delivered over…...
Trump's New Wall Will Destroy Irreplaceable Border Treasures'Unless Congress Acts
1+ mon, 2+ week ago (543+ words) The "One Big Beautiful Bill" did not include the provision that spared the La Lomita chapel, the Santa Ana refuge, or any other sensitive location, and a map posted by CBP indicates that Trump's barrier will tear through them. February…...
When Local Police Collaborate with ICE, Children Pay the Price
2+ mon, 4+ day ago (721+ words) I know exactly what message the recent deportation of an Austin mom and her 5-year-old sends to kids. They learn that calling 911 is dangerous. February 4, 2026, 4: 46 PM, CST Montserrat Garibay was an assistant deputy secretary in the Department of Education during…...
The Texas AI Boom is Outpacing Water Regulations
2+ mon, 5+ day ago (541+ words) Each data center can "drink" as much as an entire community. Yet, Texas does not require these tech firms to disclose projected or actual water consumption. February 4, 2026, 12: 03 PM, CST Miranda Williamson lives and writes in Central Texas. She is a…...
How to Cause a Dysfunctional Government
2+ mon, 6+ day ago (162+ words) On RFK Jr. , Trump v. Slaughter, and the serious flaw of the right's unitary executive theory. February 3, 2026, 10: 55 AM, CST Oscar Salinas is an attorney, philosopher, and psychologist in San Antonio. He has taught at colleges and universities in Texas and California....
Black Bird Redemption Song: A Fort Worth Artists Work on Confinement, Freedom, and Fred Rouse
2+ mon, 2+ week ago (346+ words) An exhibition at the UMLAUF Sculpture Garden and Museum in Austin runs through January 25. January 20, 2026, 4: 10 PM, CST "It's all connected'that's the whole thought," Huckaby said at a public talk at UMLAUF in January. "It's about social justice, and I think…...
At the Texas AFL-CIO, a Changing of the Guard in a Time of Growth
3+ mon, 3+ week ago (707+ words) No one has done more than Rick Levy for the modern-day labor movement in Texas." December 18, 2025, 7: 45 AM, CST For labor organizing, Texas was long dismissed as a forlorn place. Right-to-work" laws restrict organizing here, most public-sector workers can't collectively bargain…...