Tag Archives: Black Lives Matter

Houston, Texas, Texas Politics

Texoblogosphere: Week of September 19th

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The Texas Progressive Alliance prefers tote bags for its deplorables as it brings you this week’s roundup.

Off the Kuff encourages you to read the Houston Chronicle’s story about how special education services have been systematically denied to Texas families.

Libby Shaw at Daily Kos is not in the least bit surprised to know TX Governor Greg Abbott threw his hat into the ring with the The Grand Wizard of Birtherism.

On Sept. 11, Socratic Gadfly looked back at 9/11 and reminded readers of many repeated, recurring causes of death that kill almost as quickly as 9/11, some with political connections, that still don’t get truly addressed.

CouldBeTrue of South Texas Chisme blames Republicans for playing mean political games instead of addressing real problems like the spread of the Zika virus. Cruel like Texas Republicans denying services to disabled children

Political polling wizard Nate Silver tells Democrats they can start to panic this week, as passed along by PDiddie at Brains and Eggs.

Neil at All People Have Value took the Harris County Volunteer Deputy Voter Registrar class this past week. It takes a long time to really be able to register anybody after you take the class because the Republicans who run the county don’t want you to register anybody. APHV is part of NeilAquino.com.

The gap between the lived experiences of White Americans and Americans of color is significant. With this in mind,Texas Leftist offers a viewpoint on and justification for Black Lives Matter. Most that have lived the experience of being unlawfully detained (or worse) by police see the movement as not only valid, but necessary.

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And here are some posts of interest from other Texas blogs.

Better Texas Blog has a bit of good news in the fight against food insecurity.

The Lunch Tray packs up six years of lunch packing advice.

Grits for Breakfast interviews Rebecca Bernhardt, executive director of Texas Fair Defense Project, which is one of the plaintiffs suing Harris County over its bail practices.

Streetsblog wonders why TxDOT doesn’t believe its own data that show Texans are driving less per day on average than they were a decade ago.

Eileen Smith has a few questions about those charitable Trump portraits.

The TSTA Blog sounds the warning about school vouchers again.

houston-freeways

(photo credit:  TexasFreeway.com)

Houston Politics, Politics, Texas Politics

Why #BLM? A Justification For Black Lives Matter

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For many folks across the country, the Black Lives Matter movement is wrought with controversy.  Even today, many White Americans do not understand the continuing frustration that communities of color have with some of those in law enforcement, and they certainly don’t understand why people seem to be out and ready to protest on a regular basis.  As has recently been seen in Houston, the activity has even led to counter-protest by “White Lives Matter” individuals.

And even for those of us who DO understand, the reasons for such a movement can be an incredibly difficult set of circumstances to explain to others, especially those not actively seeking the knowledge.  Someone who believes, for example, that African-Americans are just “naturally more violent” than whites is unlikely to understand the general concept of transgenerational trauma, much less the myriad of societal injustices which have plagued American communities of color for centuries.

With this seemingly insurmountable task in mind, here are a couple of videos that may help..

Black in White America— This groundbreaking ABC News Special Report aired in 1989, and examines evidence that even younger Black children suffer from a lack of affirmation in society, and as a result, de-value in their self-worth, and in some cases, the worth of others.  Again, this video is from over 25 years ago, long before the most current iteration of Black Lives Matter.

 

Race Baiting 101— Created by award-winning documentarian Matthew Cooke, this video provides an excellent timeline of American society’s relationship with the Black community, and how and where it has intersected with the White Community.

The above is also a great lead up to Dr. Joy DeGruy’s research into Post-Traumatic Slave Syndrome.  Again, this is a highly provocative concept, but one worth consideration.

 

So for those that are truly struggling, here are a few resources that may help people understand, or a least chart a path to understanding, some reasons for the Black Lives Matter movement.

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Houston, Houston Politics, Politics

Harris County Officer Escapes Indictment in Death of Ashtian Barnes

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The numbers are startling, the similarities are haunting, and the frequency… incomprehensible.  As citizens across this country continue to be unlawfully detained, arrested and even killed by police under circumstances that are questionable at best, the grieving families of these victims are left with little peace or consolation.

Such is the case for the family of Ashtian Barnes, 24, who was killed by Harris County Police Officer Roberto Felix on April 28th.  Today, Officer Roberto Felix was No-Billed by a Harris County Grand Jury, which means he will not be indicted or face charges for the death of Barnes.  Here’s more from Fox 26 Houston…

HOUSTON (FOX 26) – After two sessions, a grand jury has not indicted a Harris County Precinct 5 deputy constable in the April 28 deadly shooting of Ashtian Barnes.

“What we can say is that the presentation was comprehensive and responsive to the needs of the grand jury,” said Harris County District Attorney’s Office Civil Rights Division Chief Julian Ramirez. “The 183rd Grand Jury handled this case with great care.” The grand jury of twelve people included three African Americans and three Hispanics.

[…]

At least nine of the 12 grand jurors needed to find probable cause to indict the deputy constable. DA Anderson said that the panel’s decision shows there was not enough evidence for a charge.

But the newly released video via Black Lives Matter- Houston has many people seeing the outcome differently.  The video, which seems to counter the officer’s account of the incident, is leading many viewers to cry foul with the Grand Jury’s decision.  As one may recall from earlier this summer, those standards to find Probable Cause against policemen were significantly toughened when a Supreme Court decision decimated the Fourth Amendment, giving police virtual right to profile and suspect any citizen that they want. As seen and heard from the video, the officer seems to be looking for reasons to conduct a search of Barnes’ vehicle. Beyond the lack of probable cause, BLM members also stated that officers and lawyers for Felix were “laughing in the face” of activists outside the trial.

At this moment, BLM members are gathering for a protest in front of the Harris County courthouse, calling for Justice for Ashtian Barnes.  The protest begins at 6pm.  Texas Leftist will be following the developments.

Do you agree with the Grand Jury’s assessment??  Leave your feedback in the comments.

Ashtian Barnes

United States

Jorge Ramos Shines Light on Immigration Issues

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But first, two definitions….

Civil disobedience is the active, professed refusal to obey certain laws, demands, and commands of a government, or of an occupying international power.

Civil discourse is engagement in discourse (conversation) intended to enhance understanding.

It’s important to understand these two terms… both the differences and similarities among them.  And the fact that sometimes, an encounter can have elements of both.

Such is the case for recent encounter between veteran bilingual journalist Jorge Ramos and 2016 Presidential hopeful Donald Trump.  Here’s a recap via Fusion TV…

For Mr. Trump and his accompanying echo chambers, Ramos’ actions were “absolutely out of line“.  Which I guess means we’re to assume that Trump’s full-scale Twitter attack against Fox News reporter Megyn Kelly is somehow acceptable and appropriate??

But let’s be clear about what happened.  Whether you consider Ramos’ actions to be more in the civil discourse camp, or the civil disobedience camp, that doesn’t change the fact that the reporter achieved his desired result.  In front of the national news media, he was successfully able to not only press Trump on Immigration, but also put the issue at the forefront of America’s political discussion once again.  He did so in the highest form of civil discourse… journalism.

The confrontation was similar to recent tactics employed by the Black Lives Matter movement and the DREAM Action Coalition. Individuals in these organizations may not be as well known as Ramos, but when given the opportunity, they have successfully brought their issues of concern to light, and in many cases, achieved important progress.

In November 2016 and the whole process leading up to it, Americans are being asked to make one of the most important decisions that we will ever make.  In the course of making that decision, all Americans have the right to question those seeking the office, and engage in civil discourse around issues that concern our lives.  Jorge Ramos was not out of line with Donald Trump… he was doing his job and representing the concerns of millions of Americans who want answers to those very questions.  Just as he has done with President Obama at many points in his Presidency, Speaker of the House John Boehner and even Democratic front-runner Hillary Clinton, Ramos continues to press Federal leaders on why they  have not yet achieved comprehensive Immigration Reform after years of promises to do so from both Democrats and Republicans.

After decades in the supposedly cut-throat world of big business, Mr. Trump sure seems to have difficulty with some of the most basic levels of civil discourse.  Jorge Ramos deserves high commendation for staying committed to the cause, and for being consistent with candidates of various political stripes.  The current Republican front-runner can say all he wants about the “temporary inconvenience” caused to his campaign.

But here’s a newsflash for Donald Trump… the truth ain’t always convenient.

Dos Centavos has more.

 

Jorge Ramos

Photo credit:  CNN Money

Houston Politics

Texoblogosphere: Week of July 20th

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The Texas Progressive Alliance asks #WhatHappenedToSandraBland as it brings you this week’s roundup.

Off the Kuff looks at the lawsuit filed against the state for refusing to issue birth certificates to children of undocumented immigrant mothers.

Lightseeker at Texas Kaos makes a compelling argument as to why the Democratic Party needs to sharpen its message in a way in which it resonates with and motivates the majority of D voters. Why we need a better Democratic story and how Sanders’ candidacy underscores this point.

Socratic Gadfly says that if Obama is going to visit a federal prison and talk about commuting sentences, he ought to throw the long bomb by going to Florida and freeing Leonard Peltier.

CouldBeTrue of South Texas Chisme wants you to know Greg Abbott screwed up child support payment upgrade. Republicans don’t really care about kids. You can tell by action after action.

From WCNews at Eye on Williamson. The rotting fruit of one-party rule in Williamson County, County GOP Elected Officials Using Courts For Petty Political Battles.

The disruption at Netroots Nation’s presidential town hall forum by activists associated with Black Lives Matter was a clash between the politics of the old-school Social Democrats and that of the New Democrats’ identity politics. PDiddie at Brains and Eggs thinks there will a coming-together of the two movements or a cleaving of the Democratic Party as the dynamic unfolds.

Neil at All People Have Value discussed Obama’s role in taking away our freedoms through the New Horizons mission to Pluto. APHV is part of NeilAquino.com.

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And here are some posts of interest from other Texas blogs.

The Texas Election Law Blog celebrates its second anniversary, and reviews the case that led to its beginning.

Ken Janda asks how can Texas continue to ask for billions of dollars in uncompensated care payments to hospitals for uninsured patients coming to emergency rooms, when more than one million of those people could be put into Medicaid Managed Care?

The TSTA Blog warns of “dangerous anti-educator” Scott Walker.

Texas Vox cheers the forthcoming end of coal.

Grits for Breakfast is pleased to see that funding has been allotted for research into the underlying scientific bases for the forensic tools and methods currently used in the criminal justice system.

David Ortez gives a graphical representation of the Houston Mayoral fundraising race.

Rachel Pearson explains why that video hit job on Planned Parenthood is “pure applesauce”.

Texas Clean Air Matters documents the trend towards clean, affordable power.

 

Houston OldYMCA

Today’s feature photo is a blast from the past– Houston’s Old YMCA building downtown.  It was demolished in 2011 (photo credit:  L. Wayne Ashley)