Rio Grande Valley - The Texas Observer

‘Not Celebrating Yet’: South Texans Wait for Biden to Cancel Trump’s Wall

The president’s pause on wall construction leaves questions unanswered in Texas.

Wed, Mar 10, 2021 |

In an interview last August, Joe Biden made a pledge: “There will not be another foot of wall constructed in my administration.” It was the first time the t...Read More

Voters walk through the gates to the polling site entrance Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2020, at Burns Elementary School in Brownsville, Texas.(Denise Cathey/The Brownsville Herald via AP)

by Arya Sundaram

Local Organizers Explain the Republican Surge in South Texas

Democrats have long taken Latino voters for granted, while Republicans have worked to fill that organizing void.

Fri, Nov 13, 2020 |

Danny Diaz wasn’t shocked when he heard about the Republican surge along the Texas-Mexico border that confounded so many national pundits last week. The major...Read More

cute drawing of a bear holding a texas sign with an orange suitcase with its thumb out as though looking for a ride somewhere

by Christopher Collins

Strangest State: Bear With Us

Weird news from far-flung Texas.

Wed, Jun 17, 2020 |

SAN YGNACIO // One May night in Zapata County, a game camera at the SpinTech-Myers Ranch captured the image of a mysterious, four-legged figure. Ranch managers ...Read More

Lourdes Salinas stands in the elevated spot where she made phone calls and helped to evacuate residents during the June 2018 flood.

by Sophie Novack

Underwater

Colonias on the Texas-Mexico border are hit hard even by small storms. For a local nonprofit, the solution lies in affordable, sustainable housing. But how do you rebuild in an area that keeps flooding?

Mon, Apr 27, 2020 |

Under Water Colonias on the Texas-Mexico border are hit hard even by small storms. For a local nonprofit, the solution lies in affordable, sustainable housing. ...Read More

by Sophie Novack

‘I Think I’m Gonna Die’: Coronavirus Compounds Risk for Dialysis Patients in the Rio Grande Valley

In the Valley, about one in three people have diabetes. They’re at higher risk for COVID-19, but those who rely on dialysis can’t stay home.

Mon, Apr 6, 2020 |

Every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday morning, Carmen Zuniga leaves her house in McAllen before dawn to go to the dialysis center about four miles away. Zuniga h...Read More

Descendants of those buried in the Eli Jackson Cemetery visit the graveyard in November. Activists have since cleared the cemetery of grass and weeds.

by Gus Bova

Trump’s Wall May Have to Avoid Multiple Historic Cemeteries

In a bid to protect a high-profile South Texas graveyard, Congress appears to have shielded other notable cemeteries too.

Fri, Mar 6, 2020 |

The Texas-Mexico border is not a blank slate for the projection of campaign promises. It’s a real place where some 2.5 million Texans live, love, and bury the...Read More

The first panels of levee border wall are seen at a construction site along the U.S.-Mexico border, Thursday, Nov. 7, 2019, in Donna, Texas. The new section, with 18-foot tall steel bollards atop a concrete wall, will stretch approximately 8 miles. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)

by Gus Bova

2020: The Year Trump’s Wall Rises or Falls

The president may be incompetent and behind schedule, but he’s done damage already. And a lot more could be on the way.

Thu, Jan 2, 2020 |

2020 could be the year that Trump’s border wall finally rises or falls. After nearly three years in office, Donald Trump is months behind schedule on his si...Read More

Detainees walk toward a fenced recreation area during a media tour at the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention facility Tuesday, Sept. 10, 2019, in Tacoma, Wash. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren)

by Gus Bova

A World Without Immigrant Prisons

Law professor and author César Cuauhtémoc García Hernández wants you to believe it’s possible.

Tue, Dec 3, 2019 |

“I imagine a future that looks more like United States history than United States present. I imagine a future in which immigration prisons do not exist.” Th...Read More

Seagulls fly at the proposed site for a liquefied natural gas export facility along the Brownsville Ship Channel.

by Gus Bova

Bridge to Nowhere

Where the Texas Gulf Coast meets Mexico, a trio of fossil fuel companies is planning an industrial complex the likes of which Texas’ Rio Grande Valley has never seen.

Mon, Sep 16, 2019 |

Where the Texas Gulf Coast meets Mexico, a trio of fossil fuel companies is planning an industrial complex the likes of which Texas’ Rio Grande Valley has nev...Read More

Articles tagged: Rio Grande Valley

The president’s pause on wall construction leaves questions unanswered in Texas.

Democrats have long taken Latino voters for granted, while Republicans have worked to fill that organizing void.

Weird news from far-flung Texas.

Colonias on the Texas-Mexico border are hit hard even by small storms. For a local nonprofit, the solution lies in affordable, sustainable housing. But how do you rebuild in an area that keeps flooding?

In the Valley, about one in three people have diabetes. They’re at higher risk for COVID-19, but those who rely on dialysis can’t stay home.

In a bid to protect a high-profile South Texas graveyard, Congress appears to have shielded other notable cemeteries too.

The president may be incompetent and behind schedule, but he’s done damage already. And a lot more could be on the way.

Law professor and author César Cuauhtémoc García Hernández wants you to believe it’s possible.

Where the Texas Gulf Coast meets Mexico, a trio of fossil fuel companies is planning an industrial complex the likes of which Texas’ Rio Grande Valley has never seen.