protests

Texas A&M announces task force to weigh removing statue of Sul Ross, Confederate general and former governor

By Raga Justin Updated: June 17, 2020

Texas A&M President Michael Young is urging the task forces to make a decision whether to remove a statue of Confederate general Lawrence Sullivan Ross in the near future. This move follows recent protests against the statue and accusations of racism on campus from students. Full Story

Credit: Shelby Knowles for The Texas Tribune
Texas Democrats urge Abbott to call special session as details emerge showing Javier Ambler’s death at the hands of sheriff's deputies

By Stacy Fernández June 15, 2020

In 2019, Williamson County sheriff's deputies held down Ambler and stunned him four times before his body went limp. He died at a hospital about an hour later. Full Story

Credit: Social media
Comment on looting brings bipartisan heat to Kim Olson's congressional campaign

By Patrick Svitek and Abby Livingston June 12, 2020

"Even if people loot, so what? Burn it to the ground if, you know, if that’s what it’s gonna take to fix our nation," Olson said. The comment, and her explanation afterward, drew criticism from Republicans and the Congressional Black Caucus, which supports her primary runoff opponent. Full Story

Credit: Juan Figueroa for The Texas Tribune
In George Floyd-inspired protests, Texas organizers find new allies in quest for police reforms

By Alexa Ura and Stacy Fernández June 10, 2020

“They had to watch this man literally gasp for air ... to give a damn,” one Austin organizer said about the momentum building after millions saw the video of Floyd’s death. “They saw it. It was real, and I think that’s why we are where we are.” Full Story

Credit: Pu Ying Huang for The Texas Tribune
Analysis: A surprise accountability test for local politicians

By Ross Ramsey June 10, 2020

Moving local elections because of the pandemic might seem unremarkable. But it gives voters a rare chance to instantly grade elected officials' handling of a pandemic and a bad economy, as well as their response to cases of police brutality. Full Story

Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune
Analysis: Events — and their own words — put Texas Republicans in an election year bind

By Ross Ramsey June 8, 2020

Texas Democrats convened last week. But it was the state's Republicans giving them the most hope about the coming November elections. Full Story

Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera for The Texas Tribune
Dallas, San Antonio lift curfews as protests continue

By Raga Justin June 6, 2020

Dallas and San Antonio announced Saturday they are lifting downtown-area curfews, though protests against police brutality and racism continue. Full Story

Credit: Shelby Tauber for The Texas Tribune
Harris County GOP chair-elect resigns after sharing racist Facebook post juxtaposing an MLK quote with a banana

By Raga Justin Updated: June 6, 2020

Outcry over his racist post on Facebook prompted Keith Nielsen, the chair-elect of the Harris County Republican Party, to say he won't take the job in August. Full Story

Credit: Social Media
Analysis: Coronavirus is not the only affliction preying on community

By Ross Ramsey June 4, 2020

The protests of the last week are about an affliction that's bigger than the pandemic — and important enough for people to forget about social distancing. Full Story

Credit: Joel Angel Juarez for The Texas Tribune
In Austin, a liberal bastion, protests force another reckoning with racism, segregation

By Alex Samuels June 4, 2020

Although Austin was not the only city in Texas to have protests, the death of Michael Ramos there brought out tensions that have long plagued the city, a place that is recognized for its moments of progressivism yet has deep-rooted racial biases. Full Story

Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune
Texas police using tear gas and rubber bullets on protesters incites more violence, experts say

By Aliyya Swaby, Jolie McCullough and Cassandra Pollock June 3, 2020

Organizers and protesters say the use of force by police during protests in Texas cities highlights the underlying discord between law enforcement and residents that underpinned the protests in the first place. Full Story

Credit: Jordan Vonderhaar for The Texas Tribune
Analysis: For a state in pain, a little empathy is only a start

By Ross Ramsey June 2, 2020

Gov. Greg Abbott has avoided the president's militaristic tenor and has expressed empathy with nonviolent demonstrators protesting George Floyd's death. But the conversations about what's next haven't started. Full Story

Credit: Tom Brenner/POOL via REUTERS
“I didn’t care if I was exposed to COVID”: Protesters’ anger outweighed their fear of getting sick

By Edgar Walters June 2, 2020

Political leaders have sought to balance support for demonstrators’ rights of free expression with warnings about the public health risks of large crowds. Full Story

Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune
Black protester who was critically injured by police in protest is identified, student newspaper reports

By Jolie McCullough Updated: June 3, 2020

Austin police shot a 20-year-old black man with a "less-lethal" weapon Sunday, and he is in critical condition in an Austin hospital, police Chief Brian Manley said. His family identified him as Justin Howell, a Texas State University student. Full Story

Credit: Eddie Gaspar/The Texas Tribune
As Donald Trump threatens to deploy the military, Texas officials urge calm after a weekend of protests

By Texas Tribune Staff June 1, 2020

Curfews remain in place in Dallas and Fort Worth. Gov. Greg Abbott will travel to Dallas on Tuesday. Full Story

Credit: REUTERS/Tom Brenner
A weekend of protest and mourning: George Floyd’s death spurs demonstrations in Texas cities

By Eddie Gaspar, Shelby Tauber, Pu Ying Huang and Miguel Gutierrez Jr. Updated: May 31, 2020

Floyd, who was raised in Houston's Third Ward, was killed in Minneapolis by police. Officer Derek Chauvin has been fired, and charged with third-degree murder and manslaughter. Rallies and protests are happening all over the nation, including in several Texas cities. Full Story

Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune
Scenes from "Families Belong Together" rallies across Texas

By Jacob Villanueva June 30, 2018

Texans in multiple cities joined rallies across the country Saturday to protest the Trump administration's immigration policies and call for the reunification of thousands of immigrant children who were separated from their parents Full Story

Credit: Jorge Salgado for The Texas Tribune
Texas A&M spent more than a quarter-million dollars to draw attention from Richard Spencer's 2016 visit to campus

By Shannon Najmabadi March 9, 2018

The university's handling of the case exemplifies how difficult — and expensive — it can be for schools to respond to controversial speech on their campuses. Full Story

Credit: Michael Stravato for The Texas Tribune
Analysis: Free speech in Texas, if you have a minute or two

By Ross Ramsey Jan. 8, 2018

You’ve heard about “snowflakes” on campus — the people who melt when they hear things they don’t want to hear or cannot deal with? Here’s your opportunity to see some elected snowflakes in action. Full Story

Credit: Michael Stravato for The Texas Tribune
Project Veritas founder James O'Keefe to speak at SMU

By Matthew Choi Nov. 28, 2017

James O'Keefe will speak at Southern Methodist University on Wednesday, less than a week after The Washington Post reported a woman with possible ties to O'Keefe targeted a Post reporter in a sting operation. Full Story

Credit: Project Veritas website