Houston City Council At-Large 4 Debate-Discussion On ICE & HERO

​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.​​​​

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