“Good News” and “Bad News” from Texas
To me, Texas always has been an enigmatic state. It was the only state that once was part of Mexico that became a full-fledged slave — and cotton — state. Neil Foley’s book The White Scourge nicely analyzes the state’s complex racial history. Well, here is some news from Texas.
Good News
Next week, the televion show “Austin Now” begins a three part series on immigration with a look at the Texas Border, the frontline of the debate. the series explores the politics, policies, and problems involved in securing the 1200 mile porous border with Mexico. Featured interviews include Democratic gubernatorial candidate Chris Bell, Libertarian candidate James Werner, Independent candidate Kinky Friedman, and Steve McCraw, the Texas Director of Homeland Security. Click here for a fuller description and links to video clips.
Bad News
The dean of the School of Law at the University of Texas has urged students to “think twice” and “think twice again” about their future conduct after the Internet posting of photographs taken at an off-campus party organized around a “ghetto” theme. The photos showed the students holding 40-ounce bottles in brown paper bags and wearing Afro wigs, gold teeth and such gang-related attire as bandanas, according to students who saw the images. Some of the party-goers wore name tags with names such as “Tanika” or “Jesus” to play on a black or Hispanic stereotype, the students said. Click here for the news story on this controversy.
KJ