Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin appeared to rule out the possibility that he will throw himself into…
Category: Politics
Taking Back Texas’ Streets
Whether sharing dry recitations of road-design timelines, impassioned calls for local control, or just general bewilderment,…
Prison Journalist Shows Why We Need a Free Press—Even Behind Bars
In a postscript at the end of the letter, a request. Jason Walker writes his mom’s…
Diane Wilson on Fighting Plastic Pollution, Losing Everything, and Gaining Her Soul
For three decades, Diane Wilson, a fourth-generation shrimper from Seadrift, has been trying to hold Formosa…
Loon Star State: Republican Education
Ben Sargent for the Texas Observer To see more political cartoons from Ben Sargent, visit our Loon…
Goodbye to a Neighborhood
In the small Gulf Coast city of Freeport, a pretty mint-green house stands alone in a…
Past the Pursuit of Pretty
This is part of our coverage of South by South West (SXSW) 2023. We typically understand…
Poem: At the Lindale, Texas Post Office, I Ask for a Book of Stamps
He hands me the standard issue American flag variety with its red,its white, its ever-deepening blue.…
Turning Anti-Asian Hate into Law
My dad, an immigrant from Iran, bought our childhood home before he was a citizen of…
Abbott Aims to Pardon Racist Murderer Who Sent Explicit Texts to Apparent Minor
After an Austin jury unanimously convicted Sergeant Daniel Perry of murder, it took Governor Greg Abbott…
Strangest State: Ted Cruz Enjoys a White Claw
Amarillo A former biology professor at West Texas A&M University was sentenced to six months in…
The Path to a Safe Abortion Gets Narrower—Again
Dr. Linda Prine, a family clinician in New York City, spends a lot of her day…
The Who Behind ‘Where Wolf’
Sorry, Waldo, but folks won’t ask for your whereabouts this time around. In Robert Saucedo’s horror-comedy…
Mexican Cotton Farmers Struggle Over Genetically Modified Seed Rules
This story was originally published by Global Press Journal. Global Press Journal is an award-winning international…
Austin PD’s Bad DNA Analysis Nearly Cost This Man His Life
A team of attorneys working to right the wrongs of the Austin Police Department’s (APD) failed…
Mireille Enos Found ‘Hope’ in Lucky Hank
After establishing herself as one of the most compelling dramatic actors working in theater and television,…
Tallahassee My Texas
It’s become an inside joke among Capitol insiders that the best way to figure out what…
‘School Choice’ Is Just a Ploy to Defund Public Ed
Another session of the Texas Legislature, another push to spend public dollars on private and religious…
The Texas Observer Lives!
On Friday, the staff and I had a big party to celebrate the revival of the…
‘We Are in a Crisis’: Texas Public Schools on the Edge
In early March, the old sewage pipes of a Houston public middle school broke. By noon,…
Dallas’ Evidence Fiasco: An Exoneree’s Lawyer Speaks
In Dallas, a massive—and systemic—error on the part of the Dallas Police Department has thrown wrenches…
Dragging Democracy into the Future
This is part of our coverage of South by South West (SXSW) 2023. South By Southwest…
More Than Just a Number
At 7:30 a.m. sharp, 19 women scurry into the grand ballroom of the Renaissance Dallas North…
Save the Texas Observer!
UPDATE March 29, 5:15pm: We did it, y’all! Thanks to your incredible generosity and outpouring of…
Learning from the Dead
The mysterious woman was lying on a high grassy ridge that offered a sweeping vista, but…
True Crime’s Ethical Dilemma
This is part of our coverage of South by South West (SXSW) 2023. In an early…
We Did It, Y’all! Texas Observer Will Remain Open!
Update March 31, 2023: On Friday, the board of the Texas Democracy Foundation, the Texas Observer’s…
To our Texas Observer Community
To our Texas Observer Community, This afternoon, the Texas Democracy Foundation has unanimously voted to rescind…
Celia Israel’s Got ‘Both Feet on the Ground’
Celia Israel was front and center during Bidi Bidi Banda’s live music set at Future Front…
‘I’ve Always Been a Transplant’: A Global Perspective on Texas Hip-Hop
This is part of our coverage of South by South West (SXSW) 2023. Some people learned…
A Border Crossing with the Devil
This is part of our coverage of South by South West (SXSW) 2023. Baal was once…
Abortion Laws Stand Between Pregnant Texans and the Care They Need
This story is part of a continuing series on the dismantling of women’s healthcare in Texas.…
Clarence Brandley: Unjustly Convicted, Overdue for Justice
On October 16, 2018, Ozell Brandley walked into the downtown Houston office of Mike DeGeurin, a…
This Burned-out Texas Teacher Unseated His School Board President
Andrew Gonzales never expected his name to be on a ballot. The 30-year-old native Austinite had…
‘We Won’t Be Bullied’: Abortion Pill Website Fights Texas Censorship
Editor’s Note: This is part of our coverage of South by South West (SXSW) 2023. Before…
Dallas Has a Problem With ‘Zombie’ Astroturf Groups
This piece is part of Special Correspondent Steven Monacellis’ reporting on extremist groups masquerading as grassroots,…
Houston ISD Takeover Is a Trojan Horse for Privatization
Donnie Walker, U.S. history teacher at Wheatley High School in the Houston Independent School District (HISD),…
Haunting the Border
Editor’s Note: This is part of our coverage of South by South West (SXSW) 2023. By…
The Life, Death, and Life of San Antonio’s Symphony
It’s chill and starless in downtown San Antonio on symphony night. Just past the Express-News offices…
A Houston Opera About the Unhoused, Inspired by the Streets
Ecclesia Houston—a multi-denominational church on a ragged edge of downtown—would seem an unlikely place to find…
The ‘Dallas Express’: Your Go-To Source for Right-Wing, Astroturf News
This piece is part of Special Correspondent Steven Monacellis’ reporting on extremist groups masquerading as grassroots,…
Border Militia Bill Reveals Texas GOP’s Scheme to Expand State Enforcement Powers
With a rash of legislation unveiled at the bill filing deadline last Friday, Texas Republicans are…
Abortion Training in Texas Is Vanishing
The fetus Michelle was carrying was dead. At her 14-week checkup, the doctor had detected only…
The New Children’s Crusade: Recruiting for America’s Culture War
Wearing a blue America First cap, 19-year-old Max White stood among a dozen protesters, softly mouthing…
‘He Gets Us’ Ad Sponsors Don’t Believe in the Jesus They’re Selling
This year’s Super Bowl included two commercials selling a loving, human Jesus Christ with the tagline…
The State’s Houston ISD Takeover Is Unfair, Racist, and Wasteful
I am a parent and teacher with Community Voices for Public Education, a Houston-based nonprofit rooted…
Texas Is Failing Queer Students
Editor’s Note: The expressed opinion is of the author alone and not endorsed by WTAMU or…
Millions of Texans Are About to Lose Their Health Insurance
Last November, Tiayana Hardy gave birth to her first child, a baby girl named Laylani. “She…
Farewell to a Beloved State Park
Mildred Hempel likes to take photographs. She likes to photograph birds, otters, and even the dragonflies…
Aren’t Reporters Supposed to Challenge Authority?
Strike Diary Day 15: The giant rat was drooping. “I think it’s the generator,” said Emily…
A ‘Dark Vision’ of Discipline: Zero Tolerance Makes a Comeback
Improving school safety is a top priority in Texas during this legislative session after last year’s…
Two Executions, Many Questions about Mental Health, Innocence
Editor’s Note, March 6 2023: This story has been updated with information from one of Arthur…
Remembering a Social Justice Lawyer Extraordinaire
Jeff Blackburn’s rough road to redemption and an unconventional kind of legal superstardom in the rough-and-tumble…
‘Border Security’ Is a Financial Black Hole that Will Consume Us All
Call it the iron law of border security funding. Once a Republican starts spending money to…
Abbott Wants to Deny Undocumented Kids a Public Education
Texas’ GOP leaders have a sadistic penchant for booting out immigrant families on holidays. Last Christmas,…
Loon Star State: Nasty Eddie
Ben Sargent / Texas Observer To see more political cartoons from Ben Sargent, visit our Loon Star…
