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thebarbedwire.com
The Barbed Wire
@thebarbedwire.com
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For all Texans who love Texas.
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thebarbedwire.com
The Barbed Wire @thebarbedwire.com · Oct 27
Texas is one of the queerest states in America — 1.8 million of us, more than double the number of queer New Yorkers.

Welcome to Big & Bright 🌈⭐👏 , The Barbed Wire’s new space for queer life in Texas!

Subscribe here: thebarbedwire.com/subscribe-bi...
Reposted by The Barbed Wire
kissphoria.bsky.social
This piece in @thebarbedwire.com about the Houston Equal Rights Ordinance is really good! thebarbedwire.com/2025/12/04/a...
Where Did Anti-Trans Laws Start? How a Forgotten Houston Ordinance Turned Into a Massive, Nationwide Culture War
In fighting for bathroom bills in Houston, Texas conservatives provided a blueprint for the rest of the country.
thebarbedwire.com
January 9, 2026 at 6:15 PM
Reposted by The Barbed Wire
carakelly.bsky.social
our whole newsroom is now very invested in Orange Julius and his female support team.

thanks @keribla.bsky.social for sharing
thebarbedwire.com The Barbed Wire @thebarbedwire.com · 1d
Look, we really needed this one today:

🐈 💵 Thanks to some incarcerated women in Texas, a GoFundMe benefitting a senior cat named Orange Julius has raised more than $6,000 so he can be treated for a kidney infection.

thebarbedwire.com/2026/01/08/t...
Incarcerated Texas Women Are Crowdfunding a Vet Visit for a Beloved Cat Named Orange Julius
OJ has helped his owner “not lose her hope or her spark” during incarceration.
thebarbedwire.com
January 8, 2026 at 9:27 PM
thebarbedwire.com
Look, we really needed this one today:

🐈 💵 Thanks to some incarcerated women in Texas, a GoFundMe benefitting a senior cat named Orange Julius has raised more than $6,000 so he can be treated for a kidney infection.

thebarbedwire.com/2026/01/08/t...
Incarcerated Texas Women Are Crowdfunding a Vet Visit for a Beloved Cat Named Orange Julius
OJ has helped his owner “not lose her hope or her spark” during incarceration.
thebarbedwire.com
January 8, 2026 at 9:04 PM
Reposted by The Barbed Wire
hannahondeadline.bsky.social
Orange cat fan club😻 @thebarbedwire.com Read more below! thebarbedwire.com/2026/01/08/t...
Incarcerated Texas Women Are Crowdfunding a Vet Visit for a Beloved Cat Named Orange Julius
OJ has helped his owner “not lose her hope or her spark” during incarceration.
thebarbedwire.com
January 8, 2026 at 9:03 PM
Reposted by The Barbed Wire
briangaar.bsky.social
I know everything's awful but I wrote a story about incarcerated women in Texas who are doing a Gofundme for a sick cat they're taking care of. thebarbedwire.com/2026/01/08/t...
Incarcerated Texas Women Are Crowdfunding a Vet Visit for a Beloved Cat Named Orange Julius
OJ has helped his owner “not lose her hope or her spark” during incarceration.
thebarbedwire.com
January 8, 2026 at 8:54 PM
Reposted by The Barbed Wire
ventanasalmundo.bsky.social
Most did not have family in the U.S. They came from Honduras, Guatemala, and El Salvador fleeing the clutches of powerful gangs. A small contingent of her clients fled because they identified as LGBTQ+ and faced violence in their home countries. Others were the victims of labor trafficking.
January 8, 2026 at 7:00 AM
Reposted by The Barbed Wire
thebarbedwire.com
EXCLUSIVE: RAICES built a national reputation on the belief that no kid should go to court alone. Then it declined a $19.5 million federal contract and misrepresented the reason for dropping child clients, former staffers told contributor @paulflahive.bsky.social
thebarbedwire.com/2026/01/07/r...
RAICES Raised Millions to Protect Minors from Deportation. Then It Dropped Them ‘Like It Was Nothing,’ Ex Staffers Claim.
Texas nonprofit falsely represented its reasoning for dropping child immigration clients to employees and in court records, ex staffers say.
thebarbedwire.com
January 7, 2026 at 2:34 PM
Reposted by The Barbed Wire
kitoconnell.com
Do you get Big & Bright 🌈⭐👏, the newsletter I write for @thebarbedwire.com about LGBTQ+ life in Texas?

The latest issue went out today, with a special New Year's message and lots of links.

If you missed out, DM and I'll send it to you, but first you gotta subscribe: thebarbedwire.com/subscribe/
Big & Bright, decorated with a rainbow and stars, against a light blue background
January 7, 2026 at 9:01 PM
Reposted by The Barbed Wire
zoeconomy.bsky.social
👀
January 7, 2026 at 6:14 PM
Reposted by The Barbed Wire
mattenloe.bsky.social
Oh my god. This is devastating.
January 7, 2026 at 5:19 PM
Reposted by The Barbed Wire
hannahondeadline.bsky.social
RAICES emerged as a go-to group for protecting children from deportation & navigating the immigration system. They're accused of turning down millions in funding & abandoning clients under misrepresented circumstances, Paul Flahive reports for @thebarbedwire.com’s 1st investigation of 2026
January 7, 2026 at 5:54 PM
Reposted by The Barbed Wire
chron.com
🛒 This H-E-B ad feels… off. And the internet noticed.

Shoppers spotted something unusual in a recent H-E-B advertisement circulating in Texas — and it quickly sparked debate online.

See the odd detail everyone’s talking about: bit.ly/3N7KseR

#HEB #Texas #AI #artificialintelligence
January 7, 2026 at 4:45 PM
Reposted by The Barbed Wire
houstonchronicle.com
A Texas A&M professor has been told not to teach certain writings from Plato, a staple in introductory philosophy courses, because they may violate the university system's new rules against “advocating” race or gender ideology. bit.ly/49skWbA
Texas A&M blocks readings on gender ideology in philosophy class: 'Plato has been censored'
January 7, 2026 at 4:48 PM
Reposted by The Barbed Wire
gpmorrow.bsky.social
I supported RAICES in the past. This is not what I wanted to read this morning.
January 7, 2026 at 5:04 PM
Reposted by The Barbed Wire
malorienilson.com
This is just stunning, in the most horrible way.
oliviamesser.bsky.social Olivia Messer @oliviamesser.bsky.social · 2d
Our first investigation of the year just landed, and it’s a doozy.

More than 1,000 children across Texas were affected by this.

Through interviews with more than a dozen former employees and the review of internal documents and court records, The Barbed Wire found:
January 7, 2026 at 3:46 PM
Reposted by The Barbed Wire
somewhereinatx.bsky.social
MUST READ
January 7, 2026 at 3:18 PM
Reposted by The Barbed Wire
carakelly.bsky.social
Our first investigation of 2026 is live! We found one of the largest immigration legal service providers in TX had funding cut by the Trump admin for 2 weeks before a judge ordered it reinstated. RAICES declined to take it, but blamed the cuts in legal documents for why it dropped child clients.
January 7, 2026 at 2:54 PM
Reposted by The Barbed Wire
oliviamesser.bsky.social
Our first investigation of the year just landed, and it’s a doozy.

More than 1,000 children across Texas were affected by this.

Through interviews with more than a dozen former employees and the review of internal documents and court records, The Barbed Wire found:
After funding was restored, RAICES voluntarily declined the $19.5 million annual contract from the federal government, which accounted for roughly half of the organization’s more than $43 million budget in 2024. More than 1,000 youth across Texas were affected by the decision to effectively end the children’s program, according to a recording of a February staff meeting. RAICES had child clients sign acknowledgements that the organization’s attorneys were withdrawing from their cases because of a loss of funding that was “beyond the control of RAICES,” even after a court order that restored the funding. After the funding was restored, RAICES falsely represented the same explanation to employees and immigration courts, including in court motions into November of this year. Many former employees said they felt misled by executives at the organization about the program shuttering and some said they felt compelled to mislead their own clients. Such representations, mandated by RAICES directors, could have violated Texas’ legal ethics code.
January 7, 2026 at 2:38 PM
Reposted by The Barbed Wire
oliviamesser.bsky.social
“They just left all those minors,” said Nadia Perez, a former legal assistant in RAICES’ San Antonio office. “Just dropped them like it was nothing.”
January 7, 2026 at 2:50 PM
thebarbedwire.com
EXCLUSIVE: RAICES built a national reputation on the belief that no kid should go to court alone. Then it declined a $19.5 million federal contract and misrepresented the reason for dropping child clients, former staffers told contributor @paulflahive.bsky.social
thebarbedwire.com/2026/01/07/r...
RAICES Raised Millions to Protect Minors from Deportation. Then It Dropped Them ‘Like It Was Nothing,’ Ex Staffers Claim.
Texas nonprofit falsely represented its reasoning for dropping child immigration clients to employees and in court records, ex staffers say.
thebarbedwire.com
January 7, 2026 at 2:34 PM
Reposted by The Barbed Wire
oliviamesser.bsky.social
“I want every single person who was in the hallway charged,” Velma Duran, whose sister Irma was killed in the shooting, told the AP. “My sister put her body in front of those children to protect them, something they could have done. They had the means and the tools to do it. My sister had her body.”
thebarbedwire.com The Barbed Wire @thebarbedwire.com · 3d
Family members of the victims in Uvalde are angry that only two of 376 officers face charges.

As the first trial begins, prosecutors shed light on why they singled out Adrian Gonzales: He knew the gunman’s location before he entered the school and failed to act.

thebarbedwire.com/2026/01/06/u...
376 Officers Responded to the Uvalde School Shooting. Why Are Only Two Facing Charges?
Former officer Adrian Gonzales is one of two local officers facing prosecution for inaction during the Uvalde school shooting.
thebarbedwire.com
January 6, 2026 at 8:48 PM
Reposted by The Barbed Wire
rotkoff.bsky.social
I had the opportunity to do some work supporting the fight for justice in Uvalde in the weeks after the killings. I’ll never stop being angry at the cowardly incompetence of so may law enforcement on the scene that day. Thanks to my old pals at @thebarbedwire.com for keeping this light shining.
thebarbedwire.com The Barbed Wire @thebarbedwire.com · 3d
Family members of the victims in Uvalde are angry that only two of 376 officers face charges.

As the first trial begins, prosecutors shed light on why they singled out Adrian Gonzales: He knew the gunman’s location before he entered the school and failed to act.

thebarbedwire.com/2026/01/06/u...
376 Officers Responded to the Uvalde School Shooting. Why Are Only Two Facing Charges?
Former officer Adrian Gonzales is one of two local officers facing prosecution for inaction during the Uvalde school shooting.
thebarbedwire.com
January 6, 2026 at 9:02 PM
thebarbedwire.com
AHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!! (look who is verified now 😏)
we got a blue check mark
January 6, 2026 at 9:53 PM
Reposted by The Barbed Wire
carakelly.bsky.social
The House investigation said the “entirety of law enforcement… shares systemic responsibility” for the Uvalde school shooting deaths. So… why is only this one low level officer facing charges this week?

Read our attempt to answer that seemingly basic question.
thebarbedwire.com The Barbed Wire @thebarbedwire.com · 3d
Family members of the victims in Uvalde are angry that only two of 376 officers face charges.

As the first trial begins, prosecutors shed light on why they singled out Adrian Gonzales: He knew the gunman’s location before he entered the school and failed to act.

thebarbedwire.com/2026/01/06/u...
376 Officers Responded to the Uvalde School Shooting. Why Are Only Two Facing Charges?
Former officer Adrian Gonzales is one of two local officers facing prosecution for inaction during the Uvalde school shooting.
thebarbedwire.com
January 6, 2026 at 8:50 PM
Reposted by The Barbed Wire
oliviamesser.bsky.social
“To prosecute the very first officer on the scene is probably a good measure of whether or not other prosecutions might succeed,” Bassett said. “I think they started with the most obvious possible defendant to see how that would go through the court system.”
thebarbedwire.com The Barbed Wire @thebarbedwire.com · 3d
Family members of the victims in Uvalde are angry that only two of 376 officers face charges.

As the first trial begins, prosecutors shed light on why they singled out Adrian Gonzales: He knew the gunman’s location before he entered the school and failed to act.

thebarbedwire.com/2026/01/06/u...
376 Officers Responded to the Uvalde School Shooting. Why Are Only Two Facing Charges?
Former officer Adrian Gonzales is one of two local officers facing prosecution for inaction during the Uvalde school shooting.
thebarbedwire.com
January 6, 2026 at 8:42 PM