Featured story: Across the country, Afghan children—mostly boys—are diving into American sports. Wrestling is popular partly because it’s similar to traditional Afghan wrestling, which involves more upper-body throws but requires similar body control and mental toughness.
The Texas Observer
Afghan Refugees Find a Home on a San Antonio High School Wrestling Team
Traditional Afghan wrestling—known as Pehlwani—is a popular pastime for boys in the south-central Asian nation.
 #sports #photography #politics #USpol #culture #refugees #immigration #Texas #photography
“It’s a safe space to be yourself regardless of who that is. I don’t understand why people want to smother that.” From 2022: Drag Queen Story Hour? Over 150 people crowded into a West Texas cafe for this small town's first such event.
The Texas Observer
West Texas Town Comes Out for Drag Queens
Despite the presence of anti-LGBTQ+ protesters, over 150 people attended the first story time event in Wolfforth, a small suburb of Lubbock.
 #drag #pride #politics #culture #USpol #news #Texas #WestTexas #children
"So I don’t understand why there is no sense of urgency. Why aren’t we seeing these whistleblowers?" New today: Kevin Limiti catches up with Reality Winner as she rebuilds her life in Kingsville and reacts to the second #Trump term ...
The Texas Observer
Reality Winner Rebuilds in Kingsville
The NSA whistleblower, with a memoir coming later this year, faces the barriers for Texans with felony records.
 #whistleblower #fascism #ElonMusk #Texas #poetry #USpol #news #democracy
“Right now in McAllen and other parts of this country we’re seeing what authoritarianism is about in its ugliest way.” New today: Despite a rainstorm, people packed into the 1,800 person auditorium to hear Sen. Bernie Sanders and Rep. Greg Casar offer an alternative to oligarchy.
The Texas Observer
Can Economic Populism Win Back the Rio Grande Valley?
A Vermont U.S. senator and an Austin congressman make the case in McAllen.
 #Democrats #border #SouthTexas #politics #USpol #democracy #ElonMusk #news #immigration #ICE #photography
Update: Governor Greg Abbott vetoed SB 3, the controversial, draconian #THC ban which would have shut down thousands of Texas businesses. There will be a special session to replace it with a new bill which regulates hemp products.
The Texas Observer
Reefer Madness Returns to Texas with Dan Patrick’s THC Ban
If the governor signs SB 3 into law, thousands of jobs and billions in revenue could soon disappear.
 #cannabis #news #politics #USpol #TXlege #Texas #drugs #health
From Kit @npub1npnp...ecka in the archives: “The reality is that gender-affirming medical care for trans youth is not controversial within mainstream medicine.” But that consensus hasn't stopped the New York Times from treating anti-trans organizations as experts on #transgender health.
The Texas Observer
There Is No Legitimate ‘Debate’ Over Gender-Affirming Healthcare
A recent New York Times article that experts called inaccurate and unethical now serves as evidence in Texas against transgender kids.
 #NYTimes #media #journalism #trans #SCOTUS #news #politics #USpol #health #healthcare #children
From our magazine: air so cold breath rattles down my throat like a penny tumbling in the cracked engine of a 2008 ford ranger going 75 on 45 with a broken a/c & full of candles during an ice age exhaling 2 centuries worth of disappointment.
The Texas Observer
Poem: Apocalypses, Scenario #267-590
Air so cold breath rattles down my throat like a penny tumbling in the cracked engine of a 2008 ford ranger...
 #poetry #environment #ClimateChange #poem @poetry group
From the archives: “I was really ignorant about #Juneteenth until I started this project. I just thought Juneteenth was the day enslaved people realized they had been emancipated, but there’s so much more to the story.”
The Texas Observer
A Visit to Galveston, the Birthplace of Juneteenth
Texas was the last state to receive the news that slavery had ended.
 #Galveston #GulfCoast #history #culture #Texas
In #books: “BOOM get a rat-trap/bigger than a cat-trap/BOOM!” I call out. Dad’s eyes flutter open. A long moment passes. He taps out the groove, faintly but perfectly. Drumming is no longer his livelihood. It is his lifeline.
The Texas Observer
Book Excerpt: Art Is Immortality
Suddenly, Analina dips her head. Grief seems on the verge of overwhelming her—until something visibly intervenes…
 #music #death #grief #culture #Bookstodon #military #veterans #Texas #alzheimers
Our top story: “Anti-worker attitudes, combined with minimal safety standards, combined with hotter summers means that our state will continue to lead the nation in workplace deaths and injuries until something changes.”
The Texas Observer
Will Texas Workers Ever Get a Break from the Summer Heat?
A long-awaited hearing on a proposed OSHA heat protection rule is set for June 16, but workers are uncertain to get relief under Trump.
 #politics #USpol #Texas #news #health #environment #ClimateChange