News from the South - Texas News Feed
Why I Still Believe Texas Can Be Better
When I was in college, I had to drive 35 miles from San Marcos to Austin to visit Planned Parenthood. The first time I drove there in 2016, I didn’t know the way and the traffic on Interstate 35 overwhelmed me. For someone like me, young, uninsured, and terrified of driving in a big city, the short trip felt like crossing a continent.
So obtaining basic reproductive health care seemed virtually impossible. But I had no choice. I had no insurance. I needed care and answers.
It wasn’t the first time I’d been to a Planned Parenthood clinic. When I was 10, I remember sitting in the waiting room while my mom received care at the Planned Parenthood in the Rio Grande Valley. She tried to hide her nervousness, but I sensed it in the hum of the TV, the quiet whispers, and the weight of the moment. I didn’t fully understand what was happening, but I understood enough that this place mattered. It helped women like my mom. And one day, it would help me too.
Unfortunately, that is no longer as true. Last month, a panel of the U.S. House of Representatives advanced a measure that would block Medicaid funding from Planned Parenthood nationwide, though even the Congressional Budget Office has warned this cut wouldn’t save money. Instead, this move would cost taxpayers $300 million.
It will also strip essential care from millions who already have too few options. The places in Texas where low-income women could obtain basic care without fear or shame are disappearing.
For me, this cut feels personal. I learned early as a Texan that our state doesn’t always fight for its people. Especially if you’re Latina. Especially if you’re undocumented. Especially if you’re young, brown, or poor.
In 2007, when I was just a girl, Texas had around 80 Planned Parenthood clinics. Then came budget cuts. The political attacks. And more defunding. By 2011, about a third of those clinics had closed. In 2025, only 39 remain—and none of them can provide abortion care. Even before Texas banned abortion entirely, 96 percent of our counties already didn’t have a provider.
Let’s be clear: This issue isn’t about budgets. It’s about control.
When politicians take away clinics, birth control, abortion access, and trusted community providers, they’re not saving lives. They’re putting people in danger. And disproportionately, they’re endangering Latinas. In Texas, nearly half of Latinas live in medically underserved areas. Nearly one in four of us who are of reproductive age lack health insurance.
Although politicians continue to pass policies that harm us, we are the ones shaping this state’s future. Hispanic Texans now make up 40.2 percent of the population—surpassing non-Hispanic white Texans. But those numbers don’t matter if we’re still treated like we don’t count.
I grew up in Palmview, a Rio Grande Valley city where the community runs deep but resources do not. I saw friends share medication because they couldn’t afford refills. I saw pregnancies carried to term not out of choice but because Texas left them no other option.
Back in my college days in San Marcos, I served as a senator in the student body government from 2016-2019. During one of my terms, we passed a “Menstrual Act” to supply free menstrual products on campus. Because of that, I was invited to speak on a panel where I talked about the lack of access to period products which led me to address reproductive justice,and how hard it is for many students to access resources. Afterward, someone told me I was “too emotional” to be taken seriously.
Too emotional? I wanted to scream. If they’d experienced what I had, they’d be emotional too.
Texas taught me contradiction. It taught me how to love a place that doesn’t always love me back. But it also taught me how to speak up and keep going, even when it’s hard.
I’ve seen teens organize marches in 100-degree heat, sweat dripping down their faces, but not falter. I’ve seen immigrant mothers testify at the Texas Capitol in their second language, their voices steady despite the weight of the lawmakers’ stares. I’ve seen organizers build movements with nothing but heart and a folding table.
That’s why I decided to become an activist myself. I’ve worked in reproductive justice for over a decade. I’ve stood alongside people who have been activists since before I was born. I believe in the power of sharing and of storytelling. I believe in what happens when people stop whispering and start working. And I believe Texas can be better—not because it’s always been good to us, but because Texans deserve more.
We may not have access to abortion in our state anymore. We may be facing policy after policy meant to push us out. But we are still here, and we’re still fighting.
The post Why I Still Believe Texas Can Be Better appeared first on www.texasobserver.org
Note: The following A.I. based commentary is not part of the original article, reproduced above, but is offered in the hopes that it will promote greater media literacy and critical thinking, by making any potential bias more visible to the reader –Staff Editor.
Political Bias Rating: Far-Left
This piece is a personal essay that takes a strongly ideological stance in favor of reproductive rights and against conservative policymaking in Texas. It frames defunding Planned Parenthood and abortion restrictions as oppressive and harmful, particularly to Latinas, the uninsured, and low-income individuals. The language is emotionally charged, employing phrases like “this issue isn’t about budgets. It’s about control,” which signals a moral critique of conservative agendas. The content also highlights systemic inequities and advocates for activism and resistance. Overall, it reflects a Far-Left perspective centered on social justice, equity, and reproductive freedom.
News from the South - Texas News Feed
Texas ”No Kings” protests oppose Trump’s immigration tactics
“As Trump celebrates military, Texans protest president’s aggressive immigration enforcement” was first published by The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan media organization that informs Texans — and engages with them — about public policy, politics, government and statewide issues.
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McALLEN — Hundreds of people lined up near this border city’s federal courthouse Saturday, waving American flags and holding signs criticizing President Donald Trump and Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
It was a loud scene as anti-Trump chants were often drowned out by drivers honking to show support for the protesters’ cause. Protests, marches and rallies are happening across Texas and the country Saturday in condemnation of the Trump administration’s policies, including its aggressive immigration enforcement, and what many participants consider to be authoritarian actions.
Angeline Garza, a 36-year-old elementary school teacher from Mission, said the protest was a way for her to advocate for the undocumented children and the kids of undocumented parents.
“Now more than ever, [deportations] are affecting a lot of people and they are seeing what the Trump administration wanted to do from the beginning, that it was not just about deporting criminals,” she said.
The protests, expected to last throughout the night Saturday, coincide with the Trump administration’s planned military parade in Washington, D.C., which falls on the president’s birthday and the U.S. Army’s 250th anniversary.
But the demonstrations also began hours after two Democratic Minnesota legislators and their spouses were shot at their respective homes Saturday. The Texas Department of Public Safety later Saturday warned Texas lawmakers and legislative staffers of “credible threats” to legislators planning to attend the anti-Trump rally at the state Capitol in Austin.
[Texas makes arrest after warning state lawmakers of “credible threats” tied to Capitol protest]
The Capitol was evacuated shortly after. DPS’ notice did not specify the nature of the threats to lawmakers. Texas organizers of some of Saturday’s “No Kings” and “Kick Out The Clowns” demonstrations have stressed their protests will be nonviolent. By 3 p.m. Saturday afternoon, protests across the state were underway.
In McAllen, very few people in support of the president appeared, though one man waving two large black Trump flags paraded through the crowd. As he walked, about half a dozen people began following him and protesters chanted anti-Trump expletives at him. The man, who declined to give his name, eventually left the protest area without incident.
In Odessa, more than 150 people gathered on the northeast side of the booming oil field city. Families, veterans and oil field workers lined up in front of a main roadway on Saturday, facing a heavily trafficked part of town.
The protesters waved flags from the U.S., Mexico and El Salvador and recited the pledge of allegiance. They decried what they said was Trump’s authoritarian and monarchical approach to the presidency. Protesters told The Texas Tribune that Trump and his Cabinet had abused legal proceedings and due process for immigrants and women.
Suzanne Pack, a 62-year-old retired dietitian, said the Saturday protest was the first time she had ever been part of such a demonstration. She said she decided to attend after seeing the event advertised on social media.
“I believe that the government is not taking seriously the importance of due process, and I also believe that women’s rights are being tread upon, especially in Texas,” Pack said. “I have a daughter of childbearing age. She’s seven months pregnant today, and she’s scared to death because of the challenges against fetal maternal health.”
Texas’ “No Kings” protests were planned primarily by progressive groups 50501, Women’s March and Indivisible. The national groups are supported by dozens of smaller grassroots organizations and volunteers.
This blitz of demonstrations throughout Texas and country are intentional, said 50501 San Antonio representative Alex Svehla, and highlight the movement’s core message of “executive overreach.”
“It’s a whole wraparound regarding what Trump is doing,” Svehla said.
As planned demonstrations across the U.S. grew in number this week, Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents were told to “largely pause” enforcement in the agriculture and hospitality industries, The New York Times reported Saturday.
Earlier this month, Trump deployed 2,000 California National Guard troops to Los Angeles in response to protests against immigration enforcement sweeps there. That deployment came without permission from California Gov. Gavin Newsom, a Democrat and frequent political foe of the Republican president.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott announced on Thursday he would be deploying over 5,000 Texas National Guard members across the state in anticipation of Saturday’s protests. Roughly 2,500 of those are being diverted from Operation Lone Star border assignments, according to the Austin American-Statesman.
“It does not do any good to have the National Guard not deployed and have a city catch on fire, have crime and chaos break out, and take a day or two to get them there,” Abbott said in a Fox News interview on Thursday.
Abbott has acknowledged in several statements that peaceful protesting is a constitutional right, but that officials “will not tolerate the lawlessness we have seen in Los Angeles.” Abbott’s comments have drawn criticism from protest organizers, who have said a crucial element of their events is their nonviolent nature.
“I think that we have seen some very irresponsible comments from Greg Abbott, unfortunately, that are in line with his authoritarian tendencies and certainly Trump’s, which is of course the very thing that people are protesting about,” said Rachel O’Leary Carmona, executive director for Women’s March.
In Odessa on Saturday, the demonstrations were largely amicable, with many of the event’s organizers communicating with law enforcement officials as the day progressed. The protest’s organizers told the Tribune they had been in touch with local law enforcement officials for weeks before the event. Drivers honked their horns in support, but some of the marchers faced hecklers who shouted vulgarities at them.
Leon Fowler, an 82-year-old Navy reserve and Air Force veteran and retired teacher of history and government, said Trump undermined democracy with his actions in the oval office.
“I believe in following the law,” Fowler said. “And what I’ve seen shows no respect for law and no respect for the Constitution.”
Disclosure: New York Times has been a financial supporter of The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that is funded in part by donations from members, foundations and corporate sponsors. Financial supporters play no role in the Tribune’s journalism. Find a complete list of them here.
Big news: 20 more speakers join the TribFest lineup! New additions include Margaret Spellings, former U.S. secretary of education and CEO of the Bipartisan Policy Center; Michael Curry, former presiding bishop and primate of The Episcopal Church; Beto O’Rourke, former U.S. Representative, D-El Paso; Joe Lonsdale, entrepreneur, founder and managing partner at 8VC; and Katie Phang, journalist and trial lawyer.
TribFest 2025 is presented by JPMorganChase.
This article originally appeared in The Texas Tribune at https://www.texastribune.org/2025/06/14/texas-protests-anti-trump-immigration-no-kings/.
The Texas Tribune is a member-supported, nonpartisan newsroom informing and engaging Texans on state politics and policy. Learn more at texastribune.org.
The post Texas ”No Kings” protests oppose Trump’s immigration tactics appeared first on feeds.texastribune.org
Note: The following A.I. based commentary is not part of the original article, reproduced above, but is offered in the hopes that it will promote greater media literacy and critical thinking, by making any potential bias more visible to the reader –Staff Editor.
Political Bias Rating: Left-Leaning
The article presents the perspectives of protestors critical of President Trump’s immigration policies and perceived authoritarianism. While it largely reports facts and includes quotes from demonstrators, the framing and language lean sympathetic to the protestors’ cause. The repeated emphasis on the terms like “authoritarian,” “abuse,” and “executive overreach,” as well as quotes that cast Trump and Gov. Abbott in a negative light without significant counterbalance, reflect a left-leaning editorial stance. Though there are mentions of pro-Trump counter-protesters and statements from officials, these are brief and do not provide an equal ideological counterweight. The overall tone supports progressive concerns.
News from the South - Texas News Feed
Majority of countries have ‘no confidence’ in Trump’s abilities: Pew poll
SUMMARY: A Pew Research Center poll of 28,333 adults in 24 countries found that 62% lack confidence in Donald Trump’s leadership on global issues like economics, immigration, and foreign policy. In 19 countries, a majority expressed no faith in his abilities. While 67% described Trump as a “strong leader,” 66% said he isn’t honest, well-qualified, or able to understand complex problems. Trump scored lower than Joe Biden in 13 countries. Favorability toward the U.S. dropped in 15 nations since 2023. China is now seen as the world’s top economy by more countries than the U.S., reflecting a shift in global perceptions.
The post Majority of countries have 'no confidence' in Trump's abilities: Pew poll appeared first on www.kxan.com
News from the South - Texas News Feed
Infant highchairs recalled over 'risk of serious injury or death'
SUMMARY: The Bugaboo Giraffe highchair, retailing over $400, was recalled due to a dangerous defect causing serious injuries like falls, hematomas, facial bruising, and temporary unconsciousness. The screws attaching the legs loosen or detach over time, causing the chair to collapse. Parents reported incidents on SaferProducts.gov, Reddit, and Amazon, criticizing both product safety and Bugaboo’s slow customer service. Bugaboo urges users to stop using the chair and offers a free repair kit with redesigned screws and instructions but no refunds. Consumer Reports criticized the lack of refunds, while over 20,000 units in the U.S. and Canada have been recalled.
The post Infant highchairs recalled over 'risk of serious injury or death' appeared first on www.kxan.com
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