The Baines Report
Author Garrard Conley kicked off 2018’s Barbara Jordan Week at the LBJ School by coming to speak at its inaugural event. Conley’s new book, Boy Erased, is an autobiographical account of his experience with gay conversion therapy and his complicated relationship with his parents. Conley discussed the psychological manipulation the conversion “counselors” used, the agony […]
Photo: Paul Sableman (CC) Crook Fellow Cassie Davis details the effects of the Trump administration’s budget proposal will have on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), using insights gleaned from her work for Bread for the World: SNAP faces budget cut proposals every year, but the Trump administration takes its first hit at the effective food assistance […]
Photo: Callie Richmond Undocumented immigrants are human beings. They work, love, have fun, and — like everyone else — get sick. Sometimes they get really sick, the kind of sick that requires comprehensive, ongoing treatment and lots of community support. But unlike everyone else, it is nearly impossible for undocumented immigrants to get the medical attention […]
Photo: Bionic Teaching Texas’ 85th legislative session kicked off last month. Lawmakers now have until the end of May to balance a state budget three percent smaller than that of the previous session. Having the power of the purse, the legislature must decide which government programs to prioritize and which to trim—or cut. Policymakers have a […]
Photo: PEXELS As I headed into the Texas Union for the first session of the 2016 Texas Tribune Festival I experienced simultaneous feelings of anticipation and dread. My feet dragged slower and slower as I walked into the Santa Rita Room for the session on “Fixing Foster Care.” Foster care, adoption, and how children interact […]
Photo: Jana Birchum On April 12, 2016, the Texas Tribune published a piece about parental responses to the horrific murder of the University of Texas at Austin (UT) freshman Haruka Weiser. In short, the story goes: parents of UT students understandably want their daughters and sons to be safe in the aftermath of a horrible […]
Photo: BBC Recently, Mr. Trump told CNN’s Anderson Cooper, “I think Islam hates us.” This sentiment isn’t surprising given Trump’s previous prescriptions for dealing with Islamic terrorism which include “taking out” their families and torture. Regarding torture, he’s written, “nothing should be taken off the table when American lives are at stake…The enemy is cutting […]
On Monday, February 22, as part of the 2016 Barbara Jordan Forum, Citizens for Local and State Service (CLASS) sponsored a panel of elected officials representing city, county, and state government who addressed the topic of “Criminal Justice Reform in Central Texas.” The panel consisted of Kathie Tovo, Austin City Council member for District 9; […]
Photo Credit: The Texas Tribune The Texas Tribune Festival’s panel on “Justice and the Legislature” featured a Texas state representatives with a diversity of opinions on topics including gun control and police violence against citizens. On the recent passage of open carry laws and the expansion of concealed carry, Matt Shaheen (R-Plano) was blunt in […]