Texas Observer
@texasobserver.org
A nonprofit newsroom covering Texas through investigative journalism & narrative storytelling since 1954.
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Follow our journos: https://go.bsky.app/EdSL3Co
🤠Learn more about us: https://linktr.ee/texasobserver
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Texas Observer
@texasobserver.org
· Sep 29
Work for the Texas Observer
We’re a nonprofit with a strong public service mission; we seek to expose injustice and to produce the kind of impact journalism that makes a difference.
www.texasobserver.org
Are you interested in covering politics in the Lone Star State? The Texas Observer is hiring an intern to help us cover the 2026 elections! Apply here:
Look for us on Saturday at Zine Fest Houston! Come chat with us and check out our print magazine: www.zinefesthouston.org
November 10, 2025 at 11:00 PM
Look for us on Saturday at Zine Fest Houston! Come chat with us and check out our print magazine: www.zinefesthouston.org
Last week: " Whenever I see one, I think: fashion show. Something from Chanel. A bit of art deco. That black and white aesthetic."
Jane Goodall, the Natural World, and Why I Track Skunks
Whenever I see one, I think: fashion show. Something from Chanel. A bit of art deco. That black and white aesthetic.
www.texasobserver.org
November 10, 2025 at 9:17 PM
Last week: " Whenever I see one, I think: fashion show. Something from Chanel. A bit of art deco. That black and white aesthetic."
Come work for us!
Are you interested in covering politics in the Lone Star State? The Texas Observer is hiring an intern to help us cover the 2026 elections! Apply here:
Work for the Texas Observer
We’re a nonprofit with a strong public service mission; we seek to expose injustice and to produce the kind of impact journalism that makes a difference.
www.texasobserver.org
November 10, 2025 at 7:24 PM
Come work for us!
Last week: “Are we rushing to do this? Is this going to be properly considered? How do we know if we’ve selected the right partner or if we’re just selling off our schools?”
Houston's Top Magnet High Schools Could Become Private Partnership Charter Schools, Raising Equity Concerns
Texas' largest school district may even convert its renowned performing arts institution under a program that benefitted the state-appointed superintendent in his previous career.
www.texasobserver.org
November 10, 2025 at 6:01 PM
Last week: “Are we rushing to do this? Is this going to be properly considered? How do we know if we’ve selected the right partner or if we’re just selling off our schools?”
Featured story: Between mid-October and early November, the Texas Department of Public Safety and ICE signed a pair of agreements that will authorize some state police within DPS’s Criminal Investigations and Highway Patrol divisions to effectively operate as ICE agents.
Texas Turns Its Sprawling State Police Force Into Immigration Agents for Trump
The notorious 287(g) task force program has finally reached DPS, raising fears of widespread racial profiling.
www.texasobserver.org
November 10, 2025 at 4:30 PM
Featured story: Between mid-October and early November, the Texas Department of Public Safety and ICE signed a pair of agreements that will authorize some state police within DPS’s Criminal Investigations and Highway Patrol divisions to effectively operate as ICE agents.
Reposted by Texas Observer
From @candicebernd.bsky.social in our magazine: A Texas Observer analysis found since 2021, at least 60 cryptomines have been developed or are under construction in at least 33 counties statewide. Experts worry our grid, and water supply, can't handle the load.
Crypto's Cryptic Texas Takeover
State regulators don't want you to know about the 60-plus Bitcoin mines guzzling public water and electricity—even though consumers are already paying the price.
www.texasobserver.org
November 10, 2025 at 3:08 PM
From @candicebernd.bsky.social in our magazine: A Texas Observer analysis found since 2021, at least 60 cryptomines have been developed or are under construction in at least 33 counties statewide. Experts worry our grid, and water supply, can't handle the load.
From 2024: “Pogue takes photographs that are open-eyed and unblinking views of what many would rather not see.”
Bearing Witness: Alan Pogue's Life of Documenting Progressive Struggle
Pogue has spent his career photographing fights for social justice. Along the way, he captured the history of the Observer, too.
www.texasobserver.org
November 9, 2025 at 10:01 PM
From 2024: “Pogue takes photographs that are open-eyed and unblinking views of what many would rather not see.”
Previously: When Kendrick Sampson eventually launched BLD PWR, he was looking to merge activism and education with pop culture, inspiring others to fight for a cause while being creative—and having a good time.
‘Make Resistance Sexy’
In Houston, actor Kendrick Sampson seeks to make a party out of political engagement.
www.texasobserver.org
November 9, 2025 at 8:00 PM
Previously: When Kendrick Sampson eventually launched BLD PWR, he was looking to merge activism and education with pop culture, inspiring others to fight for a cause while being creative—and having a good time.
From Alexandra Edwards: Here's the simple, four-step plan extremists can follow to dismantle vital university programs, attack diversity, and leave workers afraid for their safety.
My University Just Taught Extremists How to Eliminate Academic Programs They Don't Like
Texas Christian University handed its power to the people working hardest to dismantle learning itself.
www.texasobserver.org
November 9, 2025 at 6:00 PM
From Alexandra Edwards: Here's the simple, four-step plan extremists can follow to dismantle vital university programs, attack diversity, and leave workers afraid for their safety.
Last week, from @josephinelee.bsky.social: Each year, 1000s of students apply for a seat at one of the top performing magnet high schools in Houston. But that opportunity could end under a proposal to turn 7 top high schools into private partnerships.
Houston's Top Magnet High Schools Could Become Private Partnership Charter Schools, Raising Equity Concerns
Texas' largest school district may even convert its renowned performing arts institution under a program that benefitted the state-appointed superintendent in his previous career.
www.texasobserver.org
November 9, 2025 at 4:00 PM
Last week, from @josephinelee.bsky.social: Each year, 1000s of students apply for a seat at one of the top performing magnet high schools in Houston. But that opportunity could end under a proposal to turn 7 top high schools into private partnerships.
Featured story: As the healthcare workers approach the small collection of makeshift shelters along the train tracks that cut through the northern Mexico industrial hub of Ciudad Juárez, the people who gather in this place to use drugs prepare for their arrival. ...
In Juárez, a Militarized Border Makes Drug Use More Deadly
Growing security deployments pose unique challenges for harm reduction groups.
www.texasobserver.org
November 8, 2025 at 10:00 PM
Featured story: As the healthcare workers approach the small collection of makeshift shelters along the train tracks that cut through the northern Mexico industrial hub of Ciudad Juárez, the people who gather in this place to use drugs prepare for their arrival. ...
In books: Born in 1897 in Louisiana to a mother from a free Black community and a father born into slavery, Audley “Queen Mother” Moore bore witness to the dying breaths of Reconstruction in the South. Then she became a vital part of the Black liberation movement.
The ‘Queen Mother’ of the Reparations Movement Gets Her Due
A UT-Austin historian tells the under-told story of Audley Moore, “one of the most important activists and theorists of the twentieth century.”
www.texasobserver.org
November 8, 2025 at 8:00 PM
In books: Born in 1897 in Louisiana to a mother from a free Black community and a father born into slavery, Audley “Queen Mother” Moore bore witness to the dying breaths of Reconstruction in the South. Then she became a vital part of the Black liberation movement.
In our magazine: Visit the 2025 Texas Book Festival with the Observer, and discover some of the most interesting, innovative and thought-provoking new books from Lone Star authors ...
Black Bookstore Owners, Government Spies, and Murder
At the 2025 Texas Book Festival, authors bring new insights to complex stories in nonfiction.
www.texasobserver.org
November 8, 2025 at 6:00 PM
In our magazine: Visit the 2025 Texas Book Festival with the Observer, and discover some of the most interesting, innovative and thought-provoking new books from Lone Star authors ...
"U.S. citizens get subjected to these kind of horrific and brutal traffic stops and rights violations—and even children can be subjected to this kind of enforcement.”
Our top story, from @francescadnunz.bsky.social: The notorious 287(g) task force program has finally reached DPS.
Our top story, from @francescadnunz.bsky.social: The notorious 287(g) task force program has finally reached DPS.
Texas Turns Its Sprawling State Police Force Into Immigration Agents for Trump
The notorious 287(g) task force program has finally reached DPS, raising fears of widespread racial profiling.
www.texasobserver.org
November 8, 2025 at 4:00 PM
"U.S. citizens get subjected to these kind of horrific and brutal traffic stops and rights violations—and even children can be subjected to this kind of enforcement.”
Our top story, from @francescadnunz.bsky.social: The notorious 287(g) task force program has finally reached DPS.
Our top story, from @francescadnunz.bsky.social: The notorious 287(g) task force program has finally reached DPS.
Audley Moore, a civil rights leader & Black nationalist, adopted the name Queen Mother in the 1960s as a symbol of both her matriarchal presence in Black organizing spaces as well as the connection to Africa that was key to her politics. But today she''s far less well-known than her contemporaries.
The ‘Queen Mother’ of the Reparations Movement Gets Her Due
A UT-Austin historian tells the under-told story of Audley Moore, “one of the most important activists and theorists of the twentieth century.”
www.texasobserver.org
November 7, 2025 at 10:11 PM
Audley Moore, a civil rights leader & Black nationalist, adopted the name Queen Mother in the 1960s as a symbol of both her matriarchal presence in Black organizing spaces as well as the connection to Africa that was key to her politics. But today she''s far less well-known than her contemporaries.
Yesterday, from @josephinelee.bsky.social: Institutions like Houston's storied public school, the High School for the Performing and Visual Arts, might no longer be open to everyone under a new plan for Houston magnet schools which has education advocates up in arms.
Houston's Top Magnet High Schools Could Become Private Partnership Charter Schools, Raising Equity Concerns
Texas' largest school district may even convert its renowned performing arts institution under a program that benefitted the state-appointed superintendent in his previous career.
www.texasobserver.org
November 7, 2025 at 7:23 PM
Yesterday, from @josephinelee.bsky.social: Institutions like Houston's storied public school, the High School for the Performing and Visual Arts, might no longer be open to everyone under a new plan for Houston magnet schools which has education advocates up in arms.
From @josephinelee.bsky.social: "From Texas to Florida, Louisiana, and New Jersey, the film reveals how librarians across the country have become victims of a crisis manufactured by national organizations bent on infiltrating and disrupting local school boards."
November 7, 2025 at 6:32 PM
From @josephinelee.bsky.social: "From Texas to Florida, Louisiana, and New Jersey, the film reveals how librarians across the country have become victims of a crisis manufactured by national organizations bent on infiltrating and disrupting local school boards."
Reposted by Texas Observer
"TCU is a private institution. The Texas Legislature didn’t force this decision. No law required the school to close these departments. They did it willingly."
Powerful testimony about the state of academic freedom and higher ed in Texas.
Powerful testimony about the state of academic freedom and higher ed in Texas.
Yesterday: Alexandra Edwards lays out the simple, four-step plan extremists can follow to dismantle vital University programs like the one she used to work for.
My University Just Taught Extremists How to Eliminate Academic Programs They Don't Like
Texas Christian University handed its power to the people working hardest to dismantle learning itself.
www.texasobserver.org
November 6, 2025 at 3:36 PM
"TCU is a private institution. The Texas Legislature didn’t force this decision. No law required the school to close these departments. They did it willingly."
Powerful testimony about the state of academic freedom and higher ed in Texas.
Powerful testimony about the state of academic freedom and higher ed in Texas.
Reposted by Texas Observer
I'll be there talking about my book, come and say hi, Austinites!! 😊
This weekend, the Texas Book Festival, which will gather some 250 authors in a bibliophilic tent city out front of the state Capitol, ironically the launching pad of myriad political attacks on supposedly intolerable tomes and sinful librarians.
Black Bookstore Owners, Government Spies, and Murder
At the 2025 Texas Book Festival, authors bring new insights to complex stories in nonfiction.
www.texasobserver.org
November 6, 2025 at 9:32 PM
I'll be there talking about my book, come and say hi, Austinites!! 😊
Reposted by Texas Observer
I’ll be out there with @txfreedomread.bsky.social and @authorsabb.bsky.social raising awareness of those political attacks on books and recruiting book lovers to help fight back. Come see us!
This weekend, the Texas Book Festival, which will gather some 250 authors in a bibliophilic tent city out front of the state Capitol, ironically the launching pad of myriad political attacks on supposedly intolerable tomes and sinful librarians.
Black Bookstore Owners, Government Spies, and Murder
At the 2025 Texas Book Festival, authors bring new insights to complex stories in nonfiction.
www.texasobserver.org
November 6, 2025 at 11:15 PM
I’ll be out there with @txfreedomread.bsky.social and @authorsabb.bsky.social raising awareness of those political attacks on books and recruiting book lovers to help fight back. Come see us!
New from Sharman Apt Russell: "I want to slow down, bend down, look, and really see. Humans have been doing this for millenia: matching shapes on the ground to meaning and story."
Jane Goodall, the Natural World, and Why I Track Skunks
Whenever I see one, I think: fashion show. Something from Chanel. A bit of art deco. That black and white aesthetic.
www.texasobserver.org
November 7, 2025 at 4:38 PM
New from Sharman Apt Russell: "I want to slow down, bend down, look, and really see. Humans have been doing this for millenia: matching shapes on the ground to meaning and story."
Our top story: “The decision of these Texas agencies to enter into such agreements will lead to an erosion of safety … in addition to increases in racial profiling and targeting of immigrants, which are symptoms of this excessive, punitive and cruel mass deportation agenda.”
Texas Turns Its Sprawling State Police Force Into Immigration Agents for Trump
The notorious 287(g) task force program has finally reached DPS, raising fears of widespread racial profiling.
www.texasobserver.org
November 7, 2025 at 3:04 PM
Our top story: “The decision of these Texas agencies to enter into such agreements will lead to an erosion of safety … in addition to increases in racial profiling and targeting of immigrants, which are symptoms of this excessive, punitive and cruel mass deportation agenda.”
Previously: At Alienated Majesty Books, the "screamo bookstore," volumes from small and indie publishers, plus works in translation, comics, and poetry stand side-by-side with shoegaze, noise and hardcore punk bands.
November 6, 2025 at 11:12 PM
Previously: At Alienated Majesty Books, the "screamo bookstore," volumes from small and indie publishers, plus works in translation, comics, and poetry stand side-by-side with shoegaze, noise and hardcore punk bands.
This weekend, the Texas Book Festival, which will gather some 250 authors in a bibliophilic tent city out front of the state Capitol, ironically the launching pad of myriad political attacks on supposedly intolerable tomes and sinful librarians.
Black Bookstore Owners, Government Spies, and Murder
At the 2025 Texas Book Festival, authors bring new insights to complex stories in nonfiction.
www.texasobserver.org
November 6, 2025 at 9:00 PM
This weekend, the Texas Book Festival, which will gather some 250 authors in a bibliophilic tent city out front of the state Capitol, ironically the launching pad of myriad political attacks on supposedly intolerable tomes and sinful librarians.