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​Happy birthday Martin Luther King!

Above is a picture of six great books about Martin Luther King. The three up top are a three volume life of King and his times. 

Another great resource is a collection of recorded King speeches called A Knock At Midnight.

On my old Texas Liberal blog, I used to do a Martin Luther King Reading Reference list each year. Here is the last one I did back in 2013.

I don't think King would be surprised by where we are in America today. 

I'm on the Egberto Willies Politics Done Right Show every Thursday from 6 AM to 7 AM for the Houston Democracy Project segment. You can hear the show on the radio, stream it on KPFT or watch later Egberto's YouTube channel.​​

Here is a fundraising pitch for Houston Democracy Project. I'm doing the work and showing up in many different ways.  Please help the effort.

​There was an effort locally to hold a Houston Woman's March the weekend before Trump's inauguration. I don't know the folks who were looking to organize the event, but thank you to them for the effort. 

Last night the organizers posted on Facebook that the march was canceled because they could not get a permit from Houston police and the city. This distressed me because it furthers the myth that you need a permit to protest.  (And because the city and HPD are not good faith actors in protecting our right to protest.)

(Above is a picture I took from the 2017 Houston Woman's March.)

The First Amendment is your permit to protest. Also, police are not here to protect protestors.

​You need a permit to march on the street and for electronic sound amplification. You need a permit for use of certain facilities in some city parks. You can use sound amplification or march on the street without a permit. But doing so puts you at risk of a citation or arrest. You have to decide what risks you want to take.

Even the State of Texas says you have the right to assemble and protest.

From the Texas Constitution: 

Sec. 27. RIGHT OF ASSEMBLY; PETITION FOR REDRESS OF GRIEVANCES. The citizens shall have the right, in a peaceable manner, to assemble together for their common good; and apply to those invested with the powers of government for redress of grievances or other purposes, by petition, address or remonstrance.

Here is some broader information on your rights as a protester from the ACLU of Texas. 

Today at Defense Secretary-designate Hegseth's confirmation hearing, Hegseth refused to answer questions from Senator Elissa Slotkin of Michigan about if he would follow unlawful orders from Trump. It is clear that our civil liberties at risk. 

We have a right to protest. The Constitution gives us the right to protest. Do not trust police or any political figure to protect your freedom in a crisis. Know your rights & be ready to use them. 

I'm on the Egberto Willies Politics Done Right Show every Thursday from 6 AM to 7 AM for the Houston Democracy Project segment. You can hear the show on the radio, stream it on KPFT or watch later Egberto's YouTube channel.​​

Here is a fundraising pitch for Houston Democracy Project. I'm doing the work and showing up in many different ways.  Please help the effort.

Some people are considering leaving Facebook & also Meta-owned sites Instagram and Threads, because Meta has caved to the far-right, anti-democratic criminal syndicate about to take power in Washington & that has a hold on many state governments.

I'm not here to tell you to stay or suggest that you go. It's your call. (Just like it is your call to forgive or not the people who voted for this horror show.)

Social media is an important part of how I showcase my work on the Houston Democracy Project & promote the John Cornyn Houston Office Protest I don't have the money to purchase ads someplace. I need the resources I have access to.

Meta is run by Zuckerberg. Twitter is run by the monster Musk. Tik Tok is run by the brutally repressive Chinese government. There is nothing to prevent Bluesky, YouTube or Sub Stack from being taken over by the right. Everything gets bought and trashed. It's all about money and repression. I understand why people would want nothing to do with any of it.

If you leave Facebook/social media, please keep the Houston Democracy Project in mind. Please consider contributing to the Project. I have a strong record of showing up for others & I've not yielded to the aggression of the right. I'm a resource for information about Houston City Council in particular & the local fight for democracy as a whole. I never stop fighting.

If your values and need for mental well-being tell you to leave whatever social media platform, that is what you should do. As part of your departure, think about the rank and file and grassroots voices you connect with mostly on social media & find ways to remain connected. Our freedom is up to us. We are going to need each other in the difficult days ahead. 

​I'm on the Egberto Willies Politics Done Right Show every Thursday from 6 AM to 7 AM for the Houston Democracy Project segment. You can hear the show on the radio, stream it on KPFT or watch later Egberto's YouTube channel.​​

Here is a fundraising pitch for Houston Democracy Project. I'm doing the work and showing up in many different ways.  Please help the effort.

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Governor Greg Abbott is using a tragedy impacting diverse urban people he hates to help Putin/Musk/Trump attack democracy. 

You see his tweet above. He says there would be needed resources for Los Angeles if only we were not sending money to Ukraine. Governor Abbott could have mentioned any country. He picked Ukraine. 

Is the problem tax cuts for the rich or corporate subsidies or immense wasteful military spending.

Nope. The problem in Abbott's view is the war Putin started Trump wants to end on Putin's terms on Putin's terms and that is part of the aggressive attacks on democracy from Co-President Musk. 

If Abbott cares so much about Los Angeles, why doesn't he care about Houston? 

He didn't care if we got state money after Hurricane Harvey. He signed a law allowing the state to easily overrule municipal ordinances. He made certain the state will be able to overturn elections in Harris County.

The idea Greg Abbott cares if the people of Los Angeles live or die is laughable. He doesn't care if the people of Texas live or die as we see with the endless Texas Republican refusal to expand Medicaid. 

If he cared about the well-being of the people of Los Angeles and Houston, Governor Abbott would address  climate change which is a big cause of the California wildfires and Hurricane Harvey.

The use of people's misery to help take away our freedom and the freedom of people around the world is a core purpose of the Republican Party. These are horrible people doing terrible things. We must be aware of what is taking place and fight back everyday.

​I'm on the Egberto Willies Politics Done Right Show every Thursday from 6 AM to 7 AM for the Houston Democracy Project segment. You can hear the show on the radio, stream it on KPFT or watch later Egberto's YouTube channel.​​

Here is a fundraising pitch for Houston Democracy Project. I'm doing the work and showing up in many different ways.  Please help the effort.

​Musk, Trump & the right are blaming California and Los Angeles for the terrible fires taking place. 

Elon Musk blamed the fires on DEI hires in the Los Angeles Fire Department. 

Donald Trump is blaming Governor Gavin Newsom and Mayor Karen Bass for a bunch of things they did not do and policies they did not have. 

From Mother Jones:

Some of the themes emerging are consistent: pretty much every wildfire is accused of not being a wildfire at all, but a planned attack meant to further some sinister end. This serves two purposes: casting doubt on the established science of climate change, and finding a more politically useful target to pin a disaster on. Conspiracy peddlers blamed the devastating 2018 wildfires in Northern California on 'directed energy weapons,” a tidy mix of climate change skepticism blended with endless paranoia about what the government is capable of perpetrating on its own citizens. Typically, proponents’ “evidence” for this will be claiming that the fire is displaying unusual or suspicious behavior, unlike a “normal” fire. Those ideas quickly surfaced this week: Stew Peters, for instance, claimed that in some firestruck areas “none of the bushes and trees were disturbed at all” and the “lawns are still green,” adding, “the government wants to kill you and then they want to steal your land.”

Climate change appears much very much a factor in the Los Angeles fires.

​After Hurricane Harvey in 2017, Trump blamed victims of the storm for needing to be rescued. 

Here is what he said: 
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"Saved 16,000 people, many of them from Texas, for whatever reason that is. People went out in their boats to watch the hurricane. That didn't work out to well. That didn't work out to well."

Climate change made the rain and the flooding worse from Hurricane Harvey.

Facts don't matter and suffering doesn't matter to Trump and the right. Every disaster that hits cities and Democratic-voting states will be blamed on the people most impacted. There will not be any solutions offered. Every bad thing will be used to compound the harm. 

We won't yield to this. We'll fight back. 

​I'm on the Egberto Willies Politics Done Right Show every Thursday from 6 AM to 7 AM for the Houston Democracy Project segment. You can hear the show on the radio, stream it on KPFT or watch later Egberto's YouTube channel.​​

Here is a fundraising pitch for Houston Democracy Project. I'm doing the work and showing up in many different ways.  Please help the effort.

​Congressmember Lizzie Fletcher is holding a virtual town hall meeting tonight, January 8th. Above you see notice of the virtual town hall.

Congressmember Fletcher has held a range of events over the years to meet with constituents according to her website. Some have been in-person and others virtual. In recent months, she has moved towards virtual events. I'm glad Congressmember Fletcher is holding town halls. The Congresswoman is not specifically the issue here. 

It's time for elected officials to go to mostly in-person town halls. Accessibility issues need to be addressed and all forums need to be open to all people. Virtual town halls have a place. But in my view, nothing replaces the effectiveness of one-on-one direct conversation. 

With the nation and Texas shifting towards authoritarianism, average citizens face risks for joining peaceful political protest and also for routine political advocacy. Elected officials can't be isolated from these realities. 

I take part in a weekly pro-democracy protest outside of Senator John Cornyn's Office. (Each Tuesday, 11:30-1, 5300 Memorial Dr.) We've been out for almost eight years now and are peaceful lawful folks. While the great majority of reactions are always positive, things that have been thrown at us include eggs, a softball, potatoes, lit cigars and batteries. A man opposing us once showed up with a holstered gun. If we can take these risks showing up for democracy, our elected officials can as well. 

Even the most routine political activity in Houston has risks. Political canvassing comes with encounters with stray dogs, aggressive dogs at the door, relentless heat and poor air quality. Every frequent canvasser has stories of bullying right-wingers encountered along the way. These stresses are taken up by dedicated volunteers (And paid canvassers as well) of all ages. 

We've seen in South Korea in recent weeks the value of showing up in person the value of showing up in person. Fighting the imposition of martial law, both members of the South Korean assembly & everyday people worked together and took risks for their freedom. 

Leadership is putting yourself in the same place as the people you serve. All elected officials should take constituent questions in an open and accessible place and on a frequent basis. If there are unscripted or disruptive moments--So be it. It's a chance we all have to take if we are going to win our fight against authoritarianism in the United States. 

I'm on the Egberto Willies Politics Done Right Show every Thursday from 6 AM to 7 AM for the Houston Democracy Project segment. You can hear the show on the radio, stream it on KPFT or watch later Egberto's YouTube channel.​​

Here is a fundraising pitch for Houston Democracy Project. I'm doing the work and showing up in many different ways.  Please help the effort. ​​​​​​​​​

Mass deportations are on the way from the Trump administration.  

These deportations may well involve American citizens. Families will be separated.

Is any elected Democrat in Houston/Harris County taking a clear public role in preparing constituents for what is on the way in terms of deportations? (Or highly possible attacks on civil liberties.) If so, I've not heard of it. 

We've been told time and time again by the Democrats we've donated to, volunteered for and voted for in Harris County, that diversity is one of our greatest local strengths and that immigration is good. 

Here is an opportunity for our elected leaders to put those words into action. 

Here are some things our officials could do:

1. Be willing to discuss the matter in the first place.

2. Tell people what legal rights they have if interacting with law enforcement or immigration officials & tell people what type of resources are available for people facing deportation and guide people to those resources. 

3. Press for answers about to what extent the Houston Police Department and the Harris County Sheriff's Office will be taking part in deportations. The moment local police become direct agents of Trump policies, it is a new world for civil liberties and our relationship with municipal law enforcement. 

4. Whatever else they could think to do and have planned to do given that they are elected leaders, this is very diverse city/county and the deportations are starting soon. We were told all through 2024 ​what would take place if Trump won.

​According to information on the official state page of my State Senator Molly Cook, a plurality of people in Senate District 15-41.2%-are Hispanic. 8.6% of people in SD 15 are Asian. Hispanic and Asian communities will be among those targeted by Trump's deportation squads. Here is a map of SD 15.

I encourage Senator Cook to aggressively inform the people of SD 15 about what is happening and of their rights. Her leadership would be welcome amid the silence and avoidance defining the response of elected officials to an issue of great significance to Houston/Harris County.

There is a lot of trouble ahead. The more trouble there is, the more we'll see that each of us are really the leaders. But that doesn't mean we don't need all the help we can get from our elected employees. 

I'm on the Egberto Willies Politics Done Right Show every Thursday from 6 AM to 7 AM for the Houston Democracy Project segment. You can hear the show on the radio, stream it on KPFT or watch later Egberto's YouTube channel.​​

Here is a fundraising pitch for Houston Democracy Project. I'm doing the work and showing up in many different ways.  Please help the effort. ​​​​​​​​

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​It is important we empower ourselves in the fight for our rights and our freedom. Local and trusted  autonomous sources of information who are free to speak the truth and to act as needed are essential.

Diana Martinez Alexander and Michelle Palmer are two top-notch local citizens and activists who do the work of democracy. As you see above, they are conducting a forum on the dangers of Project 2025 to Texas and the nation on January 6th. Here is where you can sign up. This is part of a series of broadcasts Diana and Michelle have hosted on important topics.

​Another strong Houston autonomous source of information is Egberto Willies. Egberto hosts Politics Done Right. I'm the guest each Thursday morning on Politics Done Right from 6 AM-7 AM for the Houston Democracy Project segment on KPFT. Egberto works very hard, strongly values factual information and is kind. Like Diana and Michelle, Egberto is someone who will show up no matter where the challenging days ahead take us.

Here is Egberto's YouTube page. Here is Egberto's Substack. 

​Secular Houston, led by Wil Jeudy, is doing good work to protect local communities from Christian nationalism. This is an important fight against a dangerous unAmerican ideology. 

Here is the website for Secular Houston. Here is the Facebook page for Secular Houston.

I also ask you to financially support the Houston Democracy Project and take part in John Cornyn Houston Office Protest. This work takes time and effort. I run the Democracy Project on my own and am a co-organizer of the Cornyn Protest. The Protest is each Tuesday, 11:30-1, 5300 Memorial Drive. We've been out weekly since January, 2017. It is essential that people see others like themselves wiling to stand openly and confidently for democracy no matter the aggression of the right. 

We all have power and the ability to act. We have the capacity to trust one another. It's tough right now. But we can keep going. You don't have to be a hero or brave. Just offer what you have to offer and do the best you can. 

I'm on the Egberto Willies Politics Done Right Show every Thursday from 6 AM to 7 AM for the Houston Democracy Project segment. You can hear the show on the radio, stream it on KPFT or watch later on Egberto's YouTube channel.​​

Here is a fundraising pitch for Houston Democracy Project. I'm doing the work and showing up in many different ways.  Please help the effort. ​​​​​​​