In advance of Trump's arraignment tomorrow in Miami, there have been many threats of violence from the right. There have also been many threats directed at the FBI and Department of Justice. 

You'd think our local tough on crime crew in Houston and Harris County and our law enforcement unions would be all over this. Where is Alexandra Mealer? Maybe too busy trying to undo the 2022 election.  

All we've heard from local Republicans and the tough on crime brigade for the past few years is that Harris County Democrats are letting criminals run wild and are defunding the  police.

Reaction to Trump's indictment is very much a Houston issue. Local Republicans support Trump and embrace the far right.

The number one public safety issue in Houston and in the United States is protecting democracy. We all have a right to a future rooted in democracy and to the full realization of multi-racial democracy in our free and diverse nation.

The silence of the right in Harris County and from the self-appointed defenders of our public safety speaks loudly. 

Want to reform the local police department? Antifa! 

Attack multi-racial democracy? Have at it.        

The Republican Party and its enablers are a threat to all of us. Our local Houston Democrats must be an active part of the fight for democracy.  

In the tweet you see below, State Republican Executive Committeeman Rolando Garcia says "....there's no such thing as a "nonpartisan" election."  

Mr. Garcia was celebrating Republican wins in local Collin County elections. 

Mr. Garcia is the GOP Committee person for Texas Senate District 15. SD 15's current Senator is Democratic Houston Mayoral candidate John Whitmire.  

Senator Whitmire often seems to have a closer relationship with Dan Patrick than with the Democratic Party in Harris County.

Texas and Harris County Republicans know winning local elections is the gateway to book bans, anti-gay and trans hate & ripping away representation and democracy from diverse and Democratic voting cities and counties. 

There is no such thing as a nonpartisan election. That's a leading message of the Houston Democracy Project so long as the Republican Party is a threat to our safety and freedom.

It's a message that Houston Democrats running for Mayor, Controller, City Council and the Houston Community College Board should all embrace while we still have hope of defeating authoritarianism in Texas and the nation.      

I generally don't write much about Republicans on the Houston Democracy Project because for the moment at least I don't see the point. I can't influence what Republicans do.  

But it is important to highlight how dangerous Republicans are in our society today. 

I'm sad to report that my Congressman is Wesley Hunt who is really far to the right.

Mr. Hunt has endorsed Donald Trump for 2024 and is rallying to Trump's defense even after the federal charges yesterday. 

It's not complicated. If Trump had had his way on Jan 6, 2021 we'd not be living in a free society. (To the extent we do.) Trump continues to undermine the integrity of elections and democracy. And now he is calling for far right people to come to courthouse in Miami when he is arraigned on Tuesday.       

It's a big deal when your Congressman supports a violent traitor for President. It's not normal two party politics. It's something local Democratic officeholders and candidates should be talking about.

It's a prime reason that we as rank & file Democrats and anybody who cares about democracy should be organizing without waiting for elected officials to act. We can't trust our futures to the standard practices of a mainstream political system infected with insurrection and violence.

The Houston Democracy Project is sounding the alarm, asking Democrats to focus on democracy and calling on all of us to do all we can to guarantee our freedom.    

         

Yesterday I attended the first meeting of the Greg Abbott appointed Board of Managers.

Working out plans made in secret meetings, the board voted for board officers, a superintendent, a new meeting schedule for the board and to accept some grants from groups that have the approval of the far-right Republicans running Houston schools.

These votes came with no debate and were voice votes. There was no apparent electronic recording of the votes.

There has been some mention that the meeting was chaotic because of people in the audience.

The meeting was not chaotic from the standpoint of the board. They followed orders and passed what they wanted.

To the extent there was any disorder, it was because there is no public order without democracy. The board is out of order because they are democracy thieves working on behalf of authoritarians.

Community Voices For Public Education is working hard to push back against the wrongful takeover. Check them out and join the fight.

The Houston Democracy Project will be part of the fight all along the way.
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The picture below is from after the meeting ended. It’s rank & file Houstonians discussing what had just taken place. This session you see here was the one legitimate thing that took place yesterday.
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Last night I discussed the Houston Democracy Project at the monthly meeting of the Houston LGBTQ+ Political Caucus.  I'm out and about all the time sharing word of the Project and making the point that our Houston muncipal candidates in 2023 must make democracy a top issue on the campaign trail. We as rank & file Democrats and democracy advocates are the right folks to hold our candidates and officials accountable.

It was good to see that issues of democracy and representation were a big part of the conversation last night.  There was an extended discussion of the wrongful takeover of HISD by the state.

The loss of political representation is a matter for every community. One aspect for the Caucus is that successful Caucus endorsed school board candidates were among the board members tossed out by the state. That's a waste of resources for the Caucus--for organized labor as well--at a time when every dollar matters and authoritarians are loaded with big money.

I talked to a candidate for the Houston Community College Board last night and he expressed concern that urban community college systems across the state will be the next to see big interventions from the State of Texas.  

We'll keep fighting every step of the way. Not just to protect what we have. But also for the realization of the multi-racial democracy we have yet to fully achieve in Houston and across the nation.   

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There is an important protest tomorrow, 6/8, at the Hattie Mae White building at 4:15 PM regarding the takeover of Houston public schools by the far-right  State of Texas. Details below.

People have different opinions about HISD. But the bottom line is that people in cities and multi-racial communities have a right to representation. The state could work as partners with HISD rather than remove an elected school board in what was just 60 years ago was a Jim Crow city.     

One of the most offensive aspects of the state-selected Board of Managers is the selection of Janette Garza Lindner to the Board. Ms. Lindner ran for the HISD Board in 2021 and lost despite a strong advantage in campaign spending. It is contempt for democracy and for multi-racial democracy to lose an election in a diverse community, and then turn around and accept the appointment of an authoritarian state government to the office you could not win at the ballot box.

There can't be compromise on the right to vote and on the basic human right of political representation. People fought and died for these freedoms. We must fight back when these things are taken from us.     

Last night I discussed and promoted the Houston Democracy Project at the monthly meeting of the West University Area Democratic Club. The meeting was on Zoom. The guest was State Rep. Ann Johnson. She talked about her role in the impeachment proceedings of Ken Paxton & about all the terrible bills in the legislature. She said there were also some wins. ( So long as the Governor actually ends up signing the bills.) 

I'm discussing the Houston Democracy Project all the time, with many different people and in many different forums. With so much at stake, it is essential that rank & file democracy advocates and Democrats hold officials and candidates accountable.

One of the people who spoke at the meeting is running for the Houston Community College Board. I had not included HCC candidates as part of the Houston Democracy Project. But now I will.​  

There will be a big protest on 6/8 at the first meeting of the so-called Board of Mangers that has been appointed by the far-right Texas state government as part of the process of stealing our Houston Public Schools. The rally will be outside the meeting and then folks will go in the meeting as well. 

You see the details below. 

This protest is a great opportunity for Houston City Council incumbents and candidates to be part of the fight for democracy in Houston and in Texas. Houston was a Jim Crow city just 60 years ago. We can't simply accept the loss of our representation. We can't accept it without a fight and we can't accept it without working to build a strong democracy movement in Houston.     

I'm available to discuss the Houston Democracy Project at your club meeting or Democratic organization    meeting. I'm also happy to answer any questions and hear your ideas and suggestions about the Houston Democracy Project.

We have to work collaboratively to protect and promote democracy & to bring our Houston city elected officials into the fight for democracy.

Please feel free to contact me at naa61840@gmail.com         

Today is the 34th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square Massacre. It certainly could happen here. Here is an account of the protests from the BBC.