Texas Maternal Mortality Committee’s Next Report Will Skip Post-‘Roe’ Deaths. Lawmakers Suspect Political Influence.
Mon, 17 Aug 2026 13:00:00 +0000
Hope Ngumezi never imagined he would be a single father. When he met his late wife Porsha at Lamar University in Beaumont, Ngumezi was instantly enamored of her energy, drive, and compassion. Both Ngumezi and Porsha came from large families and were eager to start their own. After getting married in their late 20s, they […]
The post Texas Maternal Mortality Committee’s Next Report Will Skip Post-‘Roe’ Deaths. Lawmakers Suspect Political Influence. appeared first on The Texas Observer.
https://www.texasobserver.org/maternal-mortality-committee-roe-deaths-lawmakers-politics/
Indigenous Group Sues to Stop Big Bend Border Wall on Religious Grounds
Fri, 14 Aug 2026 13:30:00 +0000
The People of La Junta for Preservation, a nonprofit founded in 2024 that works to preserve Indigenous sites, and two Indigenous worshippers of Lipan Apache lineage are suing the federal government to stop the highly contentious border barrier construction and surveying activities in Big Bend, the Texas Observer has learned. The plaintiffs argue that ongoing […]
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https://www.texasobserver.org/indigenous-group-sues-big-bend-border-wall/
The Takeover Tab: State-Imposed Superintendent Buyouts Cost School Districts Big Bucks
Thu, 13 Aug 2026 17:08:25 +0000
The State of Texas’s latest takeovers of four school districts, including Fort Worth, Beaumont, Lake Worth, and Connally Independent School Districts (ISDs) have already had a direct cost to local taxpayers. All four districts were forced to negotiate settlements with superintendents ousted by the Texas Education Agency (TEA), in packages totalling more than $1 million. […]
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https://www.texasobserver.org/the-takeover-tab/
Permian Basin Community Seeks Fix for Radium in Its Drinking Water
Wed, 12 Aug 2026 14:31:05 +0000
This article originally appeared on Inside Climate News, a nonprofit, non-partisan news organization that covers climate, energy and the environment. Sign up for their newsletter here. IMPERIAL, Texas—Many residents of this small town drive long distances to buy bottled water instead of opening up the tap. Pecos County Fresh Water, a county-operated utility, provides drinking […]
The post Permian Basin Community Seeks Fix for Radium in Its Drinking Water appeared first on The Texas Observer.
https://www.texasobserver.org/permian-basin-radium-drinking-water/
Who Pays for the High-Powered Grid that Data Centers Need?
Tue, 11 Aug 2026 19:51:17 +0000
The true scale of prospective projects that want to plug into the Texas grid is hard to hold in your head. As of August 3, the Texas governor’s office put the figure at more than 474 gigawatts of requests to connect, more than five times the grid’s record peak demand, and said roughly 90 percent […]
The post Who Pays for the High-Powered Grid that Data Centers Need? appeared first on The Texas Observer.
https://www.texasobserver.org/who-pays-for-texas-grid-upgrades-data-centers/
‘Cocks Not Glocks’ at 10
Mon, 10 Aug 2026 14:35:33 +0000
Since August 1, 2016—50 years to the day after the UT Tower shooting—it’s been legal to carry concealed firearms into most public university spaces in Texas, including classrooms. When the law went into effect despite opposition from students, administrators, and faculty, University of Texas at Austin students reacted by brandishing dildos in a performance-art-style, nonviolent […]
The post ‘Cocks Not Glocks’ at 10 appeared first on The Texas Observer.
https://www.texasobserver.org/cocks-not-glocks-at-10/
An Ode to Austin’s Unsung Proletariat
Fri, 07 Aug 2026 15:04:57 +0000
I made $7.25 an hour at my first job back in 2015, peddling candles and soaps and other good-smelling baubles at a French boutique near Rice University. It was a good job, as far as first jobs go; I was a junior in high school, and I did my homework behind the counter. I knew […]
The post An Ode to Austin’s Unsung Proletariat appeared first on The Texas Observer.
https://www.texasobserver.org/an-ode-to-austin-unsung-proletariat/
Cuba’s Government Is in Trump’s Crosshairs, but Political Dissidents Find No Refuge Here
Thu, 06 Aug 2026 16:22:53 +0000
In 2021, tired of what she said was years of persecution in Latin American countries after being forced out of her home country of Cuba, Maria Luisa Arango Presibal and her husband Nilo Gibert Arencibia decided to come to Florida. They passed through Central America and Mexico, then crossed the border near Del Rio, where […]
The post Cuba’s Government Is in Trump’s Crosshairs, but Political Dissidents Find No Refuge Here appeared first on The Texas Observer.
https://www.texasobserver.org/cuba-trump-parole-asylum-sanctions-ice-detention/
The ‘Houston Miracle’ Shell Game
Wed, 05 Aug 2026 13:37:13 +0000
When Aubrie was a freshman in the Houston Independent School District (ISD), she was assigned to an Algebra I class. On the first day of school, her teacher recognized her talent and moved her into pre-AP Algebra I, where she thrived. Two years later, at the beginning of the last school year, Aubrie was excited […]
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https://www.texasobserver.org/the-houston-miracle-shell-game/
University of Houston Is Gutting Its Gender and Sexuality Classes. That Won’t Stop Texas’ Crusade Against Higher Ed.
Tue, 04 Aug 2026 15:20:28 +0000
The sexual assault of children. The catcalling and income discrimination your sister faces. The struggles your granddad has connecting emotionally. These are topics explored in gender and sexuality studies classes. But following Florida, universities in the Lone Star State, including the University of North Texas, Texas A&M, Texas Tech, University of Texas, and now the […]
The post University of Houston Is Gutting Its Gender and Sexuality Classes. That Won’t Stop Texas’ Crusade Against Higher Ed. appeared first on The Texas Observer.
https://www.texasobserver.org/university-of-houston-ends-gender-sexuality-courses-op-ed/