Tag Archives: Austin
Building Trust
As Texans face the skyrocketing cost of housing, community land trusts offer the promise of permanent affordability. You just have to give up ownership of your land.
Building Trust As Texans face the skyrocketing cost of housing, community land trusts offer the promise of permanent affordability. You just have to give up own...Read More
Medicare Covered Her Medication for a Decade. Now, She Could be Spending Thousands Each Month For Migraine Relief.
A federal judge in Austin recently denied a patient’s appeal asking Medicare to cover the skyrocketing cost of her prescription.
Rachel Harger struggles to find the words to describe her pain. She speaks carefully, each word seeming to take significant effort. “You just, you can’t...Read More
Trump Harvests Support in America’s Farmlands
At a farm convention in Austin, the nation’s agriculture sector warmly welcomed a president who has hurt them in the past.
Donald Trump flew down to Austin on Sunday evening to commune with the sunburned, work-weary farmers and ranchers who comprise one of his most prized voting blo...Read More
Loon Star: The Governor Shows His Concern for the Homeless
To see more political cartoons from Ben Sargent, visit our Loon Star State section, or find Observer political reporting here....Read More
Hemp Snafu Offers Texas Cities a Way to Decriminalize Marijuana
Austin leaders will consider a proposal to effectively end enforcement of misdemeanor pot possession.
Last year, police groups killed marijuana reform in Texas, which both political parties now support, with a Reefer Madness-style misinformation campaign. But a ...Read More
Governor Abbott’s Campaign Against the Homeless Isn’t Just Cruel—It’s Dangerous
There’s a thin line between spreading hate, as the governor continues to do, and inciting violence.
I’m stopped at a red light next to I-35 in central Austin, waiting to cross under the highway on my drive home from work, when I see a young woman sitting on ...Read More
Greg Abbott’s ‘Indefinite,’ Imperfect Homeless Camp
Scenes from Abbottville.
Just off Highway 183 in southeast Austin, twin rows of weathered, garage-like structures line a mostly vacant 7-acre paved lot. The property, a former maintenan...Read More
A Top Cop Accused of Racism Forces Austin to Confront Bias in Law Enforcement
Austin isn’t the only Texas city where trust between police and communities of color has frayed this year.
In late October, Assistant Chief Justin Newsom abruptly resigned from the Austin Police Department after 23 years on the force. Newsom, who oversaw the departme...Read More
The Fight to Make Austin Affordable
Austin is one of the most segregated and sprawling cities in Texas. A new land development code aims to change that.
On a brisk Saturday morning in November, a group of two dozen cyclists pauses in front of a four-story apartment complex in East Austin. The Terrace at Oak Spri...Read More
