Editorial
Dear Beto and Julián, Please Don’t Run for President
Most failed presidential campaigns are high-risk bids for personal glory and a waste of time and money.
Are you planning to run for president on the Democratic ticket in 2020? If not, why not? Everyone else is. Seventeen Republicans ran in 2016, and the nominating...Read More
The GOP Machine in Texas Seems to Finally Have Slipped a Gear
Over the last few years, something has been stirring in Texas. The midterm elections may signal a seismic shift in state politics.
After Beto’s near-victory, a thumpin’ in Harris County and surprisingly poor GOP performance in conservative strongholds Tarrant, Williamson and Collin coun...Read More
Editor’s Note: The Long and the Short of It
Observer Editor Forrest Wilder on the importance of good longform storytelling.
This editor’s note originally appeared in the October issue of the Observer. I’ll admit it: for the last couple of years, I’ve paid little attention t...Read More
The Violence of Trump’s Words
How do we assess blame for the consequences of dehumanizing rhetoric?
From the start, the essence of Donald Trump’s political project has been the dehumanization of others. When he descended the gilded escalator at Trump Tower i...Read More
A Time for Radical Thinking
We need more bold ideas that challenge Trump and restore democracy.
Give Donald Trump this: he’s brought a certain clarity to our present condition. With democratic norms shattered, institutions weakened and the illusion of a ...Read More
As a Son of Slaves and the Confederacy, I Implore Governor Abbott to Remove the Capitol’s Deceitful Plaque
Heritage is the word most often given for the celebration of Confederate monuments. But my heritage must also be respected.
In 1837, my white great-great-great-grandfather bought my black great-great-great-grandmother for $800. In 1871, his son — the half-brother of her son — bec...Read More
After Years of Working with ‘Ritmo’ Detainees, I Know the Inhumane Facility Doesn’t Deserve a Second Chance
A facility with such horrible history should not be allowed to reopen under the same management.
The news that Management & Training Corporation (MTC) plans on reopening its detention center to house immigrants for the Trump administration in Raymondvil...Read More
As a Pediatrician, I Know There’s No Way to Jail Migrant Families Without Hurting Kids
If we really care about migrant kids, we can’t stop at ending the obvious atrocity of family separation at the border.
In my daily life as a pediatrician, I sometimes care for kids who have been removed from their homes — just the day before, or even that same day — by Child...Read More
It’s Time to Decriminalize Immigration
Congress should repeal the law that allows for kids to be ripped away from parents and for migrants to be criminalized en masse at the border.
This week, the news has been dominated by horrifying scenes from the border of children being ripped apart from their parents who the federal government is crim...Read More