Texas Observer
@texasobserver.org
A nonprofit newsroom covering Texas through investigative journalism & narrative storytelling since 1954. Follow our journos: https://go.bsky.app/EdSL3Co 🤠Learn more about us: https://linktr.ee/texasobserver
In this new opinion piece, Daniel Dawer and Ruth Kravetz argue that, after the state takeover, Houston ISD systematically held back students and hurt their learning opportunities in order to inflate school ratings:
The ‘Houston Miracle’ Shell Game
How Houston ISD’s takeover regime inflated school accountability ratings by systematically holding back certain students
texasobserver.org
About 100 courses in women's, gender and sexuality studies are slated to be removed from the core curriculum at the University of Houston, as colleges around the state try to appease the right-wing culture war. It will never be enough to stop the next attack.
University of Houston Nixed Its Gender and Sexuality Classes. That Won’t Stop Texas’ Crusade Against Higher Ed
College administrators wrongly hope that anticipatory obedience will satisfy a GOP-run Texas Legislature that is increasingly hostile toward education.
texasobserver.org
From our magazine: The Inside Books Project, a nonprofit operated by volunteers, sends about 40,000 free books to prisoners each year. But their vital work is endangered by a new rule banning used and hardcover books.
Throwing the Book at Books in Prison
Inside Books Project volunteers have sent used books to Texas inmates for nearly 30 years. A new crackdown is threatening their work.
texasobserver.org
The GOP county exec in Tarrant Co (Fort Worth) often kicks people out for speaking up to protest county govt actions at public meetings. Today he shut it down amid outrage over the plan to cut nearly half of election day polling places this year (as he himself faces a heated race for county exec)
Jen Rice@jenrice.bsky.social · 23h agoIn TX: Tarrant County Judge Tim O'Hare just CLEARED the meeting room, kicking out public speakers who are opposed to the GOP plan to cut half of the battleground county's Election Day voting locations for November:
unfortunate update: bsky.app/profile/texa...
Texas Observer@texasobserver.org · yesterdayNew from Andrew Joseph Pegoda: In an attempt to overcomply with Texas law, the University of Houston will eliminate over 100 women's studies, gender and sexuality courses from the core curriculum. It won't be enough to appease extremist Republicans.
In photos: These 11 months of Robinson Gonzalez’s life are a microcosm of the immigrant experience—of resilience in the face of a contradictory system that welcomes your labor but not your full presence. www.texasobserver.org/american-ska...
Don't miss my latest. Special thanks to @scholars.org @dominik-d.bsky.social especially @rachelsomerstein.bsky.social for helping with very helpful edits! And thanks to @texasobserver.org and @byjustinmiller.bsky.social for further edits and for publishing it!
Texas Observer@texasobserver.org · yesterdayNew from Andrew Joseph Pegoda: In an attempt to overcomply with Texas law, the University of Houston will eliminate over 100 women's studies, gender and sexuality courses from the core curriculum. It won't be enough to appease extremist Republicans.
Out today from @drajp.bsky.social: We say that people should be able to form their own opinions. This right to form one’s own opinion should extend to a student’s opinion that studying gender and sexuality, variables that impact everyone, is worth their investment.
University of Houston Nixed Its Gender and Sexuality Classes. That Won’t Stop Texas’ Crusade Against Higher Ed
College administrators wrongly hope that anticipatory obedience will satisfy a GOP-run Texas Legislature that is increasingly hostile toward education.
texasobserver.org
Featured story: Bobby Pulido's determined to podcast, sing, and dance his way to Congress, brushing off every scandal that seeks to poison his good-vibes campaign. Can this moderate Dem reclaim the hearts, minds and votes of this border district?
Can a Tejano Star Restore Dems’ Power in South Texas?
In his bid to win a Trumpy congressional seat, Bobby Pulido is blending his moderate message with charismatic campaigning.
texasobserver.org
New from Andrew Joseph Pegoda: In an attempt to overcomply with Texas law, the University of Houston will eliminate over 100 women's studies, gender and sexuality courses from the core curriculum. It won't be enough to appease extremist Republicans.
University of Houston Nixed Its Gender and Sexuality Classes. That Won’t Stop Texas’ Crusade Against Higher Ed
College administrators wrongly hope that anticipatory obedience will satisfy a GOP-run Texas Legislature that is increasingly hostile toward education.
texasobserver.org
“In some ways, I don’t think it can be worse.” Featured story: The collapse of a nonprofit designed to help young sex trafficking victims makes a disturbing illustration of the failures of Texas' faltering foster care system. www.texasobserver.org/the-fall-of-...
The Fall of Hope Rising: Can Faith-Based Nonprofits Fix Texas Foster Care?
The demise of a Brenham organization intended to help young victims of trafficking is a cautionary tale about the state's overreliance on religious groups to help foster kids.
texasobserver.org
They're probably hoping you won't hear about this. But tomorrow in TX, Tarrant County officials meet to vote on a GOP plan to cut almost HALF of Election Day voting locations, plus 8 early voting locations, some of them on campuses. Not hard to guess why. fortworthreport.org/2026/07/30/t...
Tarrant County considers cutting 140 Election Day polling sites for November
County commissioners vote Aug. 4 on proposed reductions to the number of early voting and day-of sites for the midterms.
fortworthreport.org
In photos: During anti-government protests in Caracas, an explosive device nearly severed Robinson Gonzalez's left hand. His home country now unsafe for him, he fled to the U.S., received asylum ... and found sponsorship from a skate brand. www.texasobserver.org/american-ska...
In books: Detention was sold as both a law-and-order necessity and an economic opportunity, welding together the racist politics of the drug war with the rise of private prisons. Communities hollowed out by deindustrialization welcomed detention centers as employers of last resort.
"If you go talk to the underserved communities in Texas, they don’t use words like moderate and progressive—they’re looking for someone who’s going to help them keep the lights on and be able to pay the bills and bring gas prices down."
In Congress, Christian Menefee Says He’s Fighting for 'the Least, the Last, and the Lost'
The latest politician to represent H-Town’s historic 18th Congressional District talks about his recent primary against Al Green, ICE, voting rights, and the U.S. Senate race.
texasobserver.org
Previously: Bobby Pulido's determined to podcast, sing, and dance his way to Congress, brushing off every scandal that seeks to poison his good-vibes campaign. Can this moderate Dem reclaim the hearts, minds and votes of this border district?
Can a Tejano Star Restore Dems’ Power in South Texas?
In his bid to win a Trumpy congressional seat, Bobby Pulido is blending his moderate message with charismatic campaigning.
texasobserver.org
Robinson Gonzales fled Venezuela, crossed the Darién Gap, received asylum and became a professional skateboarder in the United States. For our magazine, Monse Guajardo captured his story in photos:
Photo Essay: American Skater
A Venezuelan immigrant tries to make a home in San Antonio in exclusionary times.
texasobserver.org
Great work, David! And here's even more, from our site, on the new curriculum:
The Real Lesson Behind Texas' New Bible Curriculum Requirements
Students will learn that life circumstances are beyond their power to change. They will learn that their place in the economy and larger society should not be questioned.
texasobserver.org
David R. Brockman, Ph.D.@drdrbrockman.bsky.social · 3d agoI'm quoted at length in this excellent Gwen Howerton (@kissphoria.bsky.social) piece on Texas's new Bible-infused required reading list for public schools. cc: @bakerinstitute.bsky.social
ICE agents engaged in a high speed chase forced a car containing a mother and child into a ditch with their reckless driving, then handcuffed a U.S. citizen. It's business as usual for the agency in South Texas:
ICE Never Stopped Chasing People in Cars in the Rio Grande Valley
Immigration agents sped after a vehicle through a residential neighborhood on the same day of the agency’s traffic stop pause, reportedly endangering a mother and son—before pulling a gun on and…
texasobserver.org
Featured story: "I was molded from the clay soil in Deep East Texas ... This region has an antebellum history shrouded in violence, mystery, and resilience—much like the ecosystem of the Big Thicket, which is arguably the most diverse in the world."
A Love Letter to the Black Woodswomen of Deep East Texas
Where I’m from, the Afro-Texans who made me know our lives are forever woven into the ecology of the Thicket.
texasobserver.org
From @gaigedavila.bsky.social: “I guess I was in more fear because of what I had just seen happen to the young guy in Maine. I had just seen that in the morning before I left to the movies. So, can you imagine my train of thought when I saw him pull the gun on the kid?”
ICE Never Stopped Chasing People in Cars in the Rio Grande Valley
Immigration agents sped after a vehicle through a residential neighborhood on the same day of the agency’s traffic stop pause, reportedly endangering a mother and son—before pulling a gun on and…
texasobserver.org
Featured story: Thousands of children ages 10 to 12 whose lives were upended by around 8,000 arrests or criminal citations made in 168 Texas public school districts from the 2021-22 through 2024-25 school years, an investigation by the Observer has found.
In Texas Schools, a Crisis of Arrests of Kids as Young as 10
A groundbreaking data analysis shows how districts across the state are arresting and citing children for common misbehavior, leaving lasting trauma as the Legislature rejects bills to raise the age…
texasobserver.org
From @michellepitcher.bsky.social: Local officials' attempts to investigate the death of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo have been stonewalled at every turn. They've even consulted with Minneapolis for tips on forcing ICE to face justice.
Houston Is Testing Whether Trump’s ICE Is Above Texas Law
After the fatal shooting of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, local authorities have struggled to stake their claim on an investigation into a killing within the most populous Texas city’s limits.
texasobserver.org
In our latest "postcard," border reporter @jlbuch.bsky.social explores the natural beauty ... and pervasive surveillance ... of the Texas border region on a unique two-wheeled journey.
Postcard: Cycling the Rio Grande as Trump's Wall Looms
“We’re gonna be riding around areas where most everybody thinks it’s unsafe, and you’re gonna see that there’s really nothing to be worried about.”
texasobserver.org
The Observer's @josephinelee.bsky.social interviewed @cdmenefee.bsky.social about how he plans to continue fighting for his community, the ideological battles within the Democratic Party, and the ICE killing of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo.
In Congress, Christian Menefee Says He’s Fighting for 'the Least, the Last, and the Lost'
The latest politician to represent H-Town’s historic 18th Congressional District talks about his recent primary against Al Green, ICE, voting rights, and the U.S. Senate race.
texasobserver.org
Postcard: A caliche road that runs for several miles along the river through Laredo, built by U.S. Border Patrol, offers a unique way to explore the region and appreciate its natural beauty ... and the pervasiveness of border militarization.
Postcard: Cycling the Rio Grande as Trump's Wall Looms
“We’re gonna be riding around areas where most everybody thinks it’s unsafe, and you’re gonna see that there’s really nothing to be worried about.”
texasobserver.org
From Mezabahnur Masum: There's much we don't know about the data center boom and its costs: water, electricity, and more. Solving that problem is harder than it looks, and the confusion might be by design.
With Texas’ Data Center Boom, Uncertainty Is the Business Plan
Proposed projects are driven by sketchy numbers nobody has to prove: inflated demand, water use most companies never report, power plans that route around ordinary review. Either way, the public pays.
texasobserver.org
New from @michellepitcher.bsky.social: Local officials' attempts to investigate the death of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo have been stonewalled at every turn. They've even consulted with Minneapolis for tips on forcing ICE to face justice.
Houston Is Testing Whether Trump’s ICE Is Above Texas Law
After the fatal shooting of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, local authorities have struggled to stake their claim on an investigation into a killing within the most populous Texas city’s limits.
texasobserver.org
Featured story: What changed? How did Christianity become the political weapon we see today? A new book from historian Joseph L. Locke investigates how "militant" Christian nationalism became the state religion.
One State Under Whose God?
Despite the grip of conservative Christianity on Texas politics, religion here has always contained multitudes, a new work of history shows.
texasobserver.org
Postcard: A caliche road that runs for several miles along the river through Laredo, built by U.S. Border Patrol, offers a unique way to explore the region and appreciate its natural beauty ... and the pervasiveness of border militarization.
Postcard: Cycling the Rio Grande as Trump's Wall Looms
“We’re gonna be riding around areas where most everybody thinks it’s unsafe, and you’re gonna see that there’s really nothing to be worried about.”
texasobserver.org