Socratic Gadfly has semi-regularly split off coronavirus news from other items in his version of the weekly Texas Progressives Roundup. So with a very long first edition posted earlier today, I did the same with my collation of COVID stories, as well as police abuse/reform and other social justice Tweets and news.
Before we get to those ... today is #WorldTeachersDay, and they deserve our everlasting gratitude for all that they do and all that they endure.
On this #WorldTeachersDay, we want to thank Texas public school teachers for their professionalism and their commitment to students — no matter the circumstances. #txlege #TxEd #TeachersCan pic.twitter.com/GwNv7SvBno
— Texas School Coalition (@TXSC_org) October 5, 2020
Today is the LAST day to register to vote in the November elections in Texas! Education is always on the ballot. Make your voice heard. Register to vote online at: https://t.co/pbHJNakvaU. #txlege #txed pic.twitter.com/6ZJ8IhYfLW
— Texas School Alliance (@Alliance_Texas) October 5, 2020
"Families are scared:" COVID-19 concerns lead to sharp drop in pre-K enrollment across North Texas districts, @corbettsmithDMN reports. #txed #txlege #education #schools #preK #COVID19 #coronavirus https://t.co/lKzf81WSJl
— John Gravois (@Grav1) October 5, 2020
Charters too. “Modern “school choice” ideology promoted by many white billionaires is little different from the strategies of southern segregationist in the 1950s and 60s.“ #txed #txlege @TXSBOE @teainfo @GovAbbott https://t.co/xGYaJdrBtD
— Tracy Fisher (@antraasa) October 5, 2020
850 educators in Austin, TX are refusing to return to school buildings on Monday.
— Eric Blanc (@_ericblanc) October 3, 2020
This is some of most inspiring educator organizing I've seen this year — and a model to ensure safe schools for districts across the country.https://t.co/LpRl9rBtr2
Will HISD trustees listen to the constituents who don't want in-person classes to start on October 19? https://t.co/5pJZvxVqQ8
— Houston Press (@HoustonPress) October 2, 2020
State education officials announced Thursday they’ll wait an additional six weeks before cutting funding for districts with a decline in attendance because of the pandemic.
— Texas Tribune (@TexasTribune) October 3, 2020
But to qualify school districts must offer in-person instruction to all who want it.https://t.co/X40lM6zt3P
And that's my segue.
Gadfly tackled COVID political tribalism coming from multiple sides and called ALL of it out.
NEW: Houston’s response to the coronavirus pandemic was to ignore it. It didn’t work https://t.co/AwCb8HqsfM
— Businessweek (@BW) October 2, 2020
And shoutout to amazing reporting of the Houston Chronicle @HoustonChron team. They've been an example of how local news can carry a steady light in a crisis. Esp. @mmorris011 @emfoxhall @alexdstuckey & many more. Their reporting made mine possible.π€https://t.co/dzWIhwyDIs
— Shannon Sims (@shannongsims) October 2, 2020
More than half of the 15,364 COVID-19-related deaths in Texas were Hispanic people.https://t.co/dlDNWYCGYf
— KXAN News (@KXAN_News) October 1, 2020
Local politicians went to great lengths to help a businessman with a criminal past try to sell telehealth and COVID-19 services across Texas – via @TexasTribune https://t.co/vCYrPlGBnU
— San Antonio Report (@SAReport) September 25, 2020
My latest for @TexasObserver: HHSC's new budget plan could harm families + women relying on safety net services amid #COVID19 and doesn't consider cuts to a lavishly funded program that oversees non-medical, anti-#abortion crisis pregnancy centers #txlegehttps://t.co/szoWJkQyq2
— Mary Tuma (@TumaTime) September 29, 2020
Before moving to Black Lives Matter and other racial justice items, here's a few Indigenous stories that made news last week.
.@TAMU was founded with 180,217 acres of land taken from more than 180 tribal nations.
— Texas Observer (@TexasObserver) October 4, 2020
But a 45-person university task force on race relations has no Indigenous representation.https://t.co/Eb64vODnJg
Overall mistrust of the government and a history of erasure of indigenous people contribute to a lack of participation in voting in Texas' Native American communities, according to Karla Aguilar, the developmental director for American Indians in Texas. https://t.co/VxkcrYTXbR
— Texas Tribune (@TexasTribune) October 2, 2020
This case began w/ a 17-year-old Central American immigrant detained in South TX. To block abortions, ORR had forced teens to tell parents about pregnancy, tracked conception info & sent them to religious anti-abortion crisis pregnancy centers. Background: https://t.co/5pPIG02tsy https://t.co/QnuvWHxaWx
— Sophie Novack (@SophieNovack) September 29, 2020
After fierce debate, Oct. 12 will be Houston's 'Indigenous Peoples' Day,' a Columbus Day alternative https://t.co/fR4L90Z9mg
— Laredo Morning Times (@lmtnews) September 30, 2020
And unfortunately I have saved the worst for next-to-last.
Last night, Oct 3, in Wolfe City, TX, #JohnathanPrice was shot three times by police. A City of Wolfe, TX statement confirmed the shooting.
— News Lockdown (@newslockdown) October 4, 2020
According to Price's family, he was breaking up a fight when he was tased, then shot. A GoFundMe by Will Middlebrooks has raised +$20,000: pic.twitter.com/0J7UxT16Uw
RIP Johnathan Priceπ£ππΎππ₯ #BlacklivesStillMatter pic.twitter.com/amD1QMvO3d
— Anna✨ (@Annzziieee) October 4, 2020
A Black college student in Texas says campus police stormed into her dorm room with guns drawn after a group of mostly white students falsely accused her of a crime.
— NBCBLK (@NBCBLK) October 1, 2020
"This could have been a Breonna Taylor circumstance," her attorney said of the incident. https://t.co/xJPMBSGyd7
BREAKING: Files obtained by @ACLUTx show @PearlandPD, in the Houston suburb of Pearland, TX, invited federal agents to surveil #GeorgeFloyd's burial — and authorized them to open fire in the event of “unrest”https://t.co/rZLiBWH7Q5#BlackLivesMatter
— Anti-Fascist AWK (@AWKWORDrap) October 1, 2020
Researcher @hhendersonphd says policing in the U.S. perpetuates systems of inequality that mirror the nation’s history of colonialism. https://t.co/NWTeGPcOwa
— Texas Observer (@TexasObserver) October 4, 2020
Experts on crime and policing say there is no causal relationship between money spent on police and crime rates; you cannot say a drop in the former leads to a rise in the latter.
— Texas Standard (@TexasStandard) September 30, 2020
In fact, experts argue, there may be no relationship at all. https://t.co/4oMHbcIqTx
As President Trump has tried to sow doubt in the integrity of the election results, law enforcement agencies in at least four major Texas cities say they are planning for potential unrest after the election. https://t.co/rOnQy5mPNM
— Texas Tribune (@TexasTribune) October 2, 2020
Grits for Breakfast is up to part three in his review of Sylvester Turner's policing task force proposals, reminding us that meaningful police reform is far too long a haul. Alice Embree at The Rag Blog writes about the racist and sexist roots of the Electoral College. And with respect to "unrest", there's plenty of it making the rounds already.
UPDATE: Pro-Trump supporter arrested after he punches man in the face at Buc-ee’s > https://t.co/xMLRZvJuSK
— KPRC 2 Houston (@KPRC2) October 4, 2020
The school is Great Hearts Western Hills in San Antonio, TX https://t.co/MvKYvcKDVl
— basia (@Watchoutforasia) September 23, 2020
So as I like to do, here's some Tweets that gave me a little happiness this past week and I pass them on to you in hopes that they bring you the same.
How many times do we have to tell you animal carcasses do not go towards the vehicle's passenger count?! ^B https://t.co/qCd5bcnT4Q
— METRO Houston (@METROHouston) September 30, 2020
"When I told him about the ride, he said, 'You're a machine.' Just like all machines, we all break down from time to time—and it helps to know a good mechanic."@elmachuca is more than 1500 miles into his journey to cycle the Texas perimeter. https://t.co/eKcc80wLfY
— Texas Monthly (@TexasMonthly) October 2, 2020
10/3/99 A crowd of 52,033 saw the Astros finish 35 seasons in the Astrodome. First pitches were tossed by Astros President Tal Smith and Manager Larry Dierker. Smith was the assistant to Roy Hofheinz in 1965 and oversaw the Dome’s construction. pic.twitter.com/LKS2MloxpJ
— Mike Acosta (@AstrosTalk) October 4, 2020