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​I watched the Trump meeting about so-called Antifa held at the White House this past Wednesday. I watched it so you did not have to. It lasted 90 minutes. It was one of the worst shows I’ve ever seen.
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Trump, a number of the high-ranking bad people who work for him & right-wing influencers were the attendees.

Here is an account from The Guardian about the session

Here are some observations:

1. They intend to call all protest so-called Antifa.

​2. They liken so-called Antifa—which they are saying is all protest—to gangs and terrorists.

3. They are linking the October 18 No Kings protests to so-called Antifa.

4. They say mayors and police departments in Democratic cities are enabling and even cooperating with so-called Antifa.

5. No matter how you oppose them, you will be seen as so-called Antifa. Protest is due to so-called Antifa. Elected Democrats are to blame for so-called Antifa. Everything in opposition to Trump in non-conventional and conventional politics is so-called Antifa.

6. Everyone funding so-called Antifa must be investigated. Since everything is so-called Antifa, everything must be investigated.

7. Opposition to Trump is terrorism. Anyone funding or supporting this opposition is aiding terrorism. You can take it from there.

8. The people at this bad meeting really do not like being called fascists and authoritarians.

9. They are deeply terrible people.

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.​​​​

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​I'll start this post the same way I’ll end it:

* Use phone calls, e-mails and personal conversations to organize. Use channels that will be more difficult to monitor and shut down. 
* You don’t need to be part of a formal group. You can start your own group. You can join friends and stand up for freedom in ways that work for you.  
* Big crowds and important actions can happen with not much money involved. 
* Voting clearly matters, but elected officials are disconnected from our challenge. Don’t count on them or wait for them. 
* We must accept some measure of risk. We are opposing lawless, authoritarian, white supremacists. They are in positions of power and their followers are in some cases now above the law. 
* Collect and maintain a list of phone numbers, e-mails and even addresses of people you would trust in a crisis and would have useful knowledge in a crisis. 

Above you see a list of all currently-scheduled 50501 No Kings protests in Texas for Saturday, October 18.

Here is an article from the Reuters news agency today that outlines Trump plans to criminalize dissent. It is worth reading. The intent is to go after non-violent mainstream groups and persecute ways of thinking and believing. It is what they are going to do and we just have to proceed. We know there is no violent organized left. The people coordinating these attacks on the right know this as well. 
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The main Houston No Kings event is 2 PM-6 PM at Houston City Hall. I’m one of the speakers as part of my work on the Houston Democracy Project. No elected officials are speaking. The challenge ahead is ours to lead.

With this post are also links to No Kings protests in the Houston-region. Elected officials who want to take part can join the large expected crowd Downtown or go to one of the many events across the area. The No Kings protest in Katy this past June had a crowd of 1700. I wager they would appreciate and be heartened by a state legislator joining them.

Pretty much all these protests in Texas and the nation are volunteer-organized. There is no budget other than what people contribute or buy at the store on their own to make things work. 

There is not much complicated to say. No Kings protests offer an opportunity to organize ourselves and to connect with one another. We are going to need one another in the difficult days ahead. We will show up in great numbers on October 18 and then move on from that point. 

Here are Houston-region October 18 No Kings protests: 

50501 Houston at Houston City Hall, 2 PM-6 PM. More details to come. 

Katy No Kings 2 at 21010 Katy Freeway. They had a large crowd here for the big No Kings day in June. They should do well again.

No Kings Conroe, 12 PM-4PM, 300 N. Thompson

​No Kings Pasadena, 12 PM -2 PM, RSVP for location. 

No Kings La Porte, 10 AM-12 PM, 604 W. Fairmount Parkway. 

No Kings Richmond, 12 PM-2 PM, 401 Jackson St. 

No Kings Cypress, 10 AM-12 PM, RSVP for location

No Kings Kingwood, 9 AM-11 AM, West Lake Parkway and Kingwood Drive.

No Kings Brenham, 11 AM-2 PM, Easement in front of the Taco Bell, 2607 Texas-36.

No Kings Pearland, 12 PM- 2 PM, Ivy Park-Lower Kirby District, 11050 Modern Grn. Dr. 

No Kings The Woodlands, 10 AM-1 PM, Lake Woodlands Dr. & Six Pines Dr. 

​No Kings Clear Lake , 4 PM- 6PM, RSVP for location.  

​No Kings Bryan/College Station, 10 AM-12 AM, 175 Century Square Dr. 

No Kings Navasota, 10 AM-1 PM, 306 E. Washington 

No Kings Coldspring, 9:30 AM-12:30 PM, 1 TX-150 

Here is the link  for all No Kings events in Texas and across the nation. 

Again:
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* Use phone calls, e-mails and personal conversations to organize. Use channels that will be more difficult to monitor and shut down. 
* You don’t need to be part of a formal group. You can start your own group. You can join friends and stand up for freedom in ways that work for you.  
* Big crowds and important actions can happen with not much money involved. 
* Voting clearly matters, but elected officials are disconnected from our challenge. Don’t count on them or wait for them. 
* We must accept some measure of risk. We are opposing lawless, authoritarian, white supremacists. They are in positions of power and their followers are in some cases now above the law. 
​* Collect and maintain a list of phone numbers, e-mails and even addresses of people you would trust in a crisis and would have useful knowledge in a crisis. ​

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.​​​​

On September 6th, I made a Houston Democracy Project Blog post about joint operations involving both the military and the Houston Police Department. I said these-type actions do happen and there was a 10 day joint operation in 2022. At the same time, there is no reason in this climate to trust what is taking place. 

I’ve been thinking about these exercises since the use of helicopters by ICE in swarming and storming the apartment in Chicago. There were numerous reports of low-flying helicopters at the time of the Houston joint operation. 

(Above you see a graphic from the Texas National Guard Facebook page. Below you see the statement the City of Houston made at the time of the joint operation.)

People in Portland, Oregon report that military helicopters are flying low around town and "have lights that in shine in the windows..." of community residents. 

There is no reason to trust that these Houston operations were not about sending troops into civilian  buildings to terrorize people and take our rights. Trump recently said cities should be "training grounds" for the military. 

We have a right to know if Houston taxpayer resources were used to help instruct the federal government how to arrest, scare and harass people in cities across the nation. It is not difficult to imagine that these tactics could be used in Houston. 

NBC News reports today that Trump is seriously considering using the Insurrection Act to bypass courts and be able to send troops into cities. 

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton says he is going after what he defines as the left and after transgender people. 

Last week, Governor Abbott held a big press conference in Houston announcing the deployment of Texas state police in Houston and Harris County. While the announcement seems in good part about bashing Harris County Democratic Judges, I'm sure the Governor would also be fine with violating civil liberties. 

​Governor Abbott is politically fundraising on the deployment of Texas National Guard troops to invade Chicago. 

We already had reasons to doubt what the City of Houston tells us. HPD won't come clean on its cooperation with ICE no matter how many times the Chronicle reports on the subject.

The almost complete refusal of the 10 Houston City Council Democrats to comment and ask tough questions  about ICE in Houston, additional DPS police in Houston, Trump's threats to cities, Abbott's deployment of Texas National Guard to a big diverse city like Chicago and about Trump's relentless attacks on democracy, only lessen the trust democracy-loving Houstonians feel toward official accounts. 

Better communication and leadership is needed. The real local leadership is coming from rank & file Houstonians who are helping campaigns, protesting and looking out for people most under threat. 

We must stay alert, protect one another and be willing to meet the challenge of 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.​

Above you see the full text of Ken Paxton's absurd press release today about how he will be investigating people and groups he wants to target for political gain. 

I want to highlight two sentences from the release:

"Leftist political terrorism is a clear and present danger. Corrupted ideologies like transgenderism and Antifa are a cancer on our culture and have unleashed their deranged and drugged-up foot soldiers on the American people." 

I don't want to pick this apart too much. We know Paxton is a horrible person. It's clear there are people that the State of Texas wants to harass for who they are or what they believe.

The State of Texas recently sent additional state police to Houston. There is no reason at all to give them the benefit of the doubt that they won't take part in Paxton's far-right attacks on freedom. 

I will continue to fight so that we do not lose all our freedom and so that innocent people are not terrorized by cruel bigoted people. 
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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.​​​​​

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​I want to highlight three local events. Two upcoming and one just completed. The attached pictures have the specifics.

Tonight, 10/6, in Kingwood there is forum with three Democratic Judges hosted by Indivisible Kingwood and Humble Area Democrats. The moderator is Egberto Willies who hosts Politics Done Right. Egberto is a great source of independent information. We clearly are in a time where we need information we can trust.

Humble Area Democrats are a chartered club of the Harris County Democratic Party. Indivisible Kingwood is very much not a party space.

On Thursday, 10/9, there is a YouTube presentation about the impacts of Project 2025 so far hosted by Michelle Palmer and Diana Martinez Alexander. Michelle is running for State Board of Education in 2026. Diana and Michelle have teamed-up a number of times for informative broadcasts. They work in party spaces and also take the lead on efforts of their own doing. Be certain to tune in Thursday! Here is the link to take part.

Over the weekend, there was a successful At-Large 4 Council debate co-hosted by the Houston Progressive Caucus and the Spring Branch Democrats Club. Diana was one of the moderators. It was well-attended and made news. Here is my account of the debate.

Traditional party groups and spaces can be a partner and a platform for new and creative ways of organizing. We need our own channels of communication and our own infrastructure.

Voting is essential and working on elections is necessary. That work will continue.

At the same time, we must acquire the habit and practice of working together on our own projects and on our own terms. We can use and take advantage of existing spaces to help accomplish this. We can take the relationships we've made at standard party functions and do additional/different things than we were doing before. Business as usual will not get us out of this nightmare we are experiencing. We must look to one another and to innovative tactics. 

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.​​​​

​The Houston Progressive Caucus and the Spring Branch Democrats Club held a debate yesterday for Houston City Council At-Large 4.  Candidates taking part were Alejandra Salinas, Jordan Thomas and Dwight Boykins.

Here is the full debate on YouTube. Above you see the candidates in the debate. 

Early voting is October 20-October 31 & Election Day is November 4. Here is where you can vote early. Here is a list of all At-Large 4 candidates, their recent primary voting history, campaign finances & websites on the spreadsheet compiled each election season by Erik Manning. It's an excellent resource. There are candidates in this race in addition to the three featured here. Here is the Houston Democracy Project post on this race.

The Houston Progressive Caucus is doing good work. Here is their website. 

There were two questions in the debate most relevant to the Houston Democracy Project. The first was a question about ICE in Houston at the 23:30 point of the debate. The City of Houston and ICE are working together to profile and abduct Latino working and laboring people.

Ms. Salinas said she has a family member who is a U.S. citizen who had been detained by ICE. She said what ICE is doing is "unconscionable"  and if elected to Council would "stand up every single day and speak against it." If she is elected, you can bet I won't forget that assertion. 

Ms. Salinas then talked about how we would need to fight Trump "strategically" with an emphasis on court challenges. 

I'm uncertain how that all will go. 

Here are two recent news stories:

* Defense Secretary Hegseth considered sending the Army 82nd Airborne Division to Portland to crush lawful First Amendment protest in that city. 

* Trump is planning to federalize 300 Illinois National Guard troops to send into Chicago over the objection of the Governor. 

Anybody signing top for political office at this point-especially in a big Democratic-voting city like Houston-is signing up for street protest and for standing up to authoritarianism whatever it takes. 

In response to the ICE question, Mr. Thomas said Trump is "coming for anyone who has contrary views to this administration" & that he would call on the city to follow and strengthen city policy that would minimize HPD's cooperation with ICE. This proposal is part of Mr. Thomas' online platform. 

Both Ms. Salinas and Mr. Thomas could also propose local general strikes and advocate for relentless citizen-pressure on Houston city government to stand up for freedom. 

At the 53:30 point of the debate, there was a question about bringing back some form of HERO. The Houston Equal Rights Ordinance was repealed by voters in 2015. The ordinance banned discrimination against all people including gay and trans people. 

This discussion was a lesson for me in listening closely. At first hearing, I thought Ms. Salinas was saying she would support efforts at a new HERO if that was what people in general wanted. I know from conversations after the debate yesterday that others heard it that way as well.

When I listened to this portion of the debate again however, I heard her say she'd favor a new HERO if that is what the "community" wanted, and thought that was a good way forward. Ms. Salinas is a lesbian and part of the community she is referencing. I'm strongly inclined to the more favorable interpretation. Ms. Salinas was not advocating for her rights based on a willingness of others to grant them. She was saying that those greatly impacted and burdened by yet another debate on if they are full citizens or not, should decide if this is the strategy to follow. 

Mr. Thomas said he was for a new HERO-type ordinance and discussed how in the aftermath of the recent killing of a well-known influencer, some people felt the need to go after trans people and threaten Historically Black Colleges and Universities. 

I trust both Ms. Salinas and Mr. Thomas in seeing everyone as fully human and equal. I believe both would act on that belief if elected to Council .

As for Mr. Boykins-Please don't vote for him. He is endorsed by the Houston Association of Realtors and the Houston Apartment Association. Mr. Boykins was the Firefighters Union endorsed candidate for Mayor in 2019 and is endorsed by them again in this race. He has made crudely-stated assertions of how in his view young women should behave. At the 18 minute point of the debate, Mr. Thomas shares with Mr. Boykins his perspectives on housing initiatives Mr. Boykins was connected with when he served as a councilmember previously. It is worth a listen. 
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This was a fine debate. It's important to know who is running for office. The bottom line always though is that the next action is when you organize it, the First Amendment is your permit, your existence is the only credential needed and you don't need to feel self-confident--Just proceed. The fight ahead is ours. 

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.​​​​

​Houston NPR KUHF has reported that since expansion of the so-called Civility Ordinance this past July, tickets to homeless people for violating the ordinance have gone up substantially. (Graphic above from KUHF.)

From KUHF about the ordinance: 

"...prohibits sitting, lying down or placing personal possessions on sidewalks in 12 parts of the city from 7 a.m.-11 p.m. In downtown Houston and East Downtown, the rules will now apply 24/7, effectively banning the presence of homeless people in those areas." 

From KUHF about the ticketing:
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"In the two months following the Houston City Council's vote to expand the so-called civility ordinance, the Houston Police Department issued more than 500 tickets to homeless people — marking the highest two-month rate of citations since Mayor John Whitmire took office last year....Before the city council voted to expand the civility ordinance, enforcement of the rules under Mayor John Whitmire was less stringent than under Mayor Sylvester Turner. During Turner's time in office, from 2016 through 2023, HPD issued an average of 257 tickets per month. Prior to the ordinance expansion in mid-July, HPD under Whitmire issued an average of 188 tickets per month....Mayor John Whitmire's office and the Houston Police Department did not comment on the recent uptick in citations." 

I watch each session of the Tuesday public comment session and the Wednesday session of Council. A big part of the debate over the so-called Civility Ordinance was that this would not lead to increased ticketing of homeless people. But it seems that was the plan right from the start. 

​I remember Mayor Pro-Tem Martha Castex-Tatum specifically saying that people in her district were open to the ordinance being expanded, but were wary of the homeless being ticketed. 

​From KUHF back in July when the ordinance was passed: 

"No one is criminalizing the civility ordinance allowing people to be taken off the streets like a crime," Mayor John Whitmire said before the vote. "They’re being handled compassionately."....."No one likes to issue the citation and bring them to court. No one likes to make an arrest," Satterwhite said. "But I say again, it does give us another opportunity to try to get them help, and some of them take it."...Council member Mario Castillo said his conversations with the court "did ease my concerns" about homeless people receiving citation...The ordinance passed in a 14-2 vote, with council members Tarsha Jackson and Abbie Kamin voting against the change. ...."I don’t believe people should be penalized, especially our most vulnerable community, because they’re homeless," Jackson told Houston Public Media after the vote. "Ticketing — it can grow into something bigger. Once you get caught in the criminal justice system, it’s hard to come out. So I just didn’t like that approach."

Mayor Whitmire says one thing and then just does what he wants.

This is why his assurances or assurances from the city are not worth much when it is claimed--

* HPD and ICE are not working together.
* Unsual joint military/law enforcement exercises over Houston are routine. 
* Greg Abbott sending more DPS troops here is just about crime. 
* All the bodies turning up in the bayous are just the way it is and we should look the other way. 

Below is information about following and interacting with Houston City Council. They need to hear from all of us. There is not much chance they will be straight with the facts if we don't demand that they do so. It's difficult enough to get the facts when they do hear from us. 

Public comment time at Houston City Council is each Tuesday at 2 PM with the exception of the last Friday of each month when it is at 5:30 PM. Here is how you can speak at Council and here is how to contact your councilmember.  The earlier before the session you sign up, the higher up on the speaker's list you'll be. The agenda session to conduct Council business is each Wednesday at 9 AM. The agenda is posted in advance. Council can be watched live on HTV Houston Television and the most recent session is available at any time on the HTV feed on Facebook. Here is the link to past sessions of Council. Here are maps of Council districts so you can see who represents you. 

Here is contact information for Mayor Whitmire & Council. 

Mayor Whitmire—713-837-0311 [email protected] 

Democrats: 
At-Large-Letitia Plummer 832-393-3012  [email protected]
At-Large-Sallie Alcorn 832-393-3017  [email protected]
District B-Tarsha Jackson 832-393-3009  [email protected]
District C-Abbie Kamin 832-393-3004  [email protected]
District D-Carolyn Evans-Shabazz 832-393-3001 [email protected]
District F-Tiffany Thomas 832-393-3002  [email protected]
District H-Mario Castillo 832-393-3002  [email protected]
District I-Joaquin Martinez 832-393-3011 [email protected]
District J-Edward Pollard 832-393-3015  [email protected]
District K-Martha Castex-Tatum 832-393-3016  [email protected]

Republicans: 
At-Large-Julian Ramirez 832-393-3014 [email protected]
At-Large-Willie Davis 832-393-3013 [email protected] 
At-Large-Twila Carter 832-393-3005 [email protected]
District A-Amy Peck 832-393-3010 [email protected]
District E-Fred Flickinger 832-393-3008 [email protected] 
District G-Mary Nan Huffman 832-393-3007 [email protected] ​​

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.​​​​

​I watched Governor Abbott’s press conference today about additional new law enforcement push in Houston and Harris County. It was a terrible program. I did not enjoy it.

Here is a quick report: 

What the press conference was most about was bashing Harris County Democratic Judges and 2026 politics. Governor Abbott bashed the judges in this meeting.

What they claimed the meeting was about, was additional state police to focus on repeat violent offenders. Repeat violent offenders are bad people. It’s just that if you really cared, you’d get guns off the street and not slash the social safety net. You’d not come to a Democratic-voting county right before an election year and bash public officials in the presence of supposedly non-partisan police officers.

The man on the far-left is Ray Hunt. Mr Hunt is known to be a high-ranking official at the Houston Police Officer’s “Union.” He praised Governor Abbott for there now being “nine Republican Judges” on the Harris County Criminal Bench. Discussing the issues today he said “…now that the federal government supports us” on being tough on crime.

Imagine thinking this federal government supports the rule of law.

The other people at the microphone were a Texas Department of Public Safety bigwig, Governor Abbott and a top official from so-called “Crimestoppers.”

There is somewhere among the law enforcement officers in the background, a HPD assistant chief. Abbott was asked what Mayor Whitmire thinks about all this. He hemmed and hawed. Who knows what the private conversation was like. We know Mayor Whitmire is plenty comfortable with Governor Abbott.

I don’t like repeat violent offenders. They are scary. I also know that these additional state police are more resources for ICE as they terrorize the Latino working and laboring class & are more resources for Trump to enforce the suspension of civil liberties.

It would be great to have a state government that was not so horrible.

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.​​​​​