H-Town Progressive

“The Spirit of the Confederacy” statue still stands in Sam Houston Park today. It and many other Confederate monuments litter our nation and our city. These shrines to white nationalism must be removed from our public spaces. Please join us as we discuss with Brandon Mack of Black Lives Matter Houston

The way we fund public schools in Texas has been declared constitutional yet “Byzantine” by the Texas Supreme Court. Nobody likes it, and only a few people understand it. Luckily one of those few people, Professor Jay Aiyer, is with us this week to guide us through the clear as mud system of public school finance in Texas and what the Texas Legislature might be doing to try to improve things this Session. Hope you’ll come jump in the weeds with us!

Do YOU “have the audacity to believe that peoples everywhere can have three meals a day for their bodies, education and culture for their minds, and dignity, equality, and freedom for their spirits”? This week we use the inspiration of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. to talk to social worker and community leader Melanie Pang about food assistance programs in Houston. We cover the effects of the government shutdown, the proposed changes to the “public charge” policy, and the moral imperative of unapologetically supporting programs that help those in need.

We Americans are fundamentally conservative, right? That’s what we’ve been told for as long as anyone can remember. You can’t express or advocate for honest progressive values, you must pander to the mythical “right of center” middle. But this idea has failed us and lead to the current disaster in Washington. So please join us as we discuss the value of being boldly progressive in Houston, with Laura Moser.

In a representative democracy before you can have an election, you need to draw districts, and before you draw districts, you need to know WHERE and HOW MANY people there are in your country. This is why the US Constitution requires a Census every ten years, to ensure an accurate count of the people, a first building block in the process of constructing full and fair representation. But the Houston Area has some particular challenges looming over the next Census coming in 2020. Join us as we discuss these challenges and what you can do to help, with data expert Jeff Reichman.

Drag Queen Storytime is a literacy program found in libraries and bookstores across the country, and now in the Houston Public Library system. It's a wonderful program that promotes personal expression and celebrates the multiplicity of identities that have always existed in our society. This week Mike Webb, president of the Houston GLBT Political Caucus, discusses the importance of Drag Queen Storytime and the progressive project of fostering greater acceptance in our community.

In a very non-controversial move, our local government has ensured, at least for now, that robot brothels won't be coming to Houston. As progressives we might, and probably do, agree with this result. But it's extremely important that we clearly understand the justification, which, as it turns out, isn't as obvious as it might seem upon first glance. Join us this week as we navigate these tricky waters with Houston feminist and progressive leader Andrea Greer.

Houston is a world class city with world class wealth disparities. We've come a long way, but there is so much more to be done. And much of that work starts with peeling back and checking our privilege so we can see the world for what it really is. Join us this week as we go deep with community leader and activist Fran Watson on "Privilege and Poverty in Houston."

Houston progressives won big in the 2018 midterm elections. So what's next? Join us as we discuss with Lillie Schechter, Chair of the Harris County Democratic Party, how progressives have finally gained power in Harris County, and how we must fight to make sure that power translates into progressive policy. The #BlueWork that caused the #BlueWave must continue!