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Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has said Immigration and Customs Enforcement needs to “recalibrate” its tactics, and he isn’t the only member of the Texas GOP to comment on the operations and the rhetoric around it. The messaging comes a few weeks before early voting begins in the Texas primaries ahead of the midterms. We’ll have more about that on today’s show.
Former Austin police chief Art Acevedo says ICE agents are deploying tactics that show they’re either insufficiently trained or poorly supervised. He says when trust collapses, criminals win. We’ll hear more from that conversation.
The Austin City Council has postponed a vote on a contract for AI-powered surveillance cameras. We’ll look at why the vote was pushed back and what happens now.
And, the deadline is approaching to enter this year’s Tiny Desk Concert. We’ll chat with one of the the judges for the competition. And we’ve got another Black Austin music profile from our sister station KUTX.
The full transcript of this episode of Austin Signal is available on the KUT & KUTX Studio website. The transcript is also available as subtitles or captions on some podcast apps.
Jerry Quijano [00:00:08] Texas Governor Greg Abbott has said immigration and customs enforcement needs to, quote, recalibrate its tactics. And he isn’t the only member of the Texas GOP to comment on the operations and the rhetoric around it. The messaging comes a few weeks before early voting begins in the Texas primaries ahead of the midterms. We’re gonna have more about that. And a former Austin police chief says ICE agents are deploying tactics that show they’re either insufficiently trained or poorly supervised. He says when trust collapses, criminals win. Come hear more from that conversation coming up on today’s show.
KUT Announcer: Laurie Gallardo [00:00:41] The Austin Signal is a production of KUT News, hosted by Jerry Quijano.
Jerry Quijano [00:00:46] And the Austin City Council has postponed a vote on a contract for AI-powered surveillance cameras, why the vote was pushed back, and what happens now. It’s coming up next on Austin Signal. Howdy, thank you for tuning in to Austin Signal. I am your host, Jerry Kikano. It is Wednesday, February 4th, and we’re glad you’re spending part of your day here with us. We’ve got a lot to share with you today, so let’s jump right in. Buda police officers arrested a 45-year-old man following a fight Monday with student protesters near Johnson High School. Chad Michael Watts of Kyle was charged Tuesday with two counts of assault causing bodily injury. The incident was captured in a now viral video. A man and a student protester are seen getting into a verbal argument that quickly turns physical. The man throws a girl to the ground and strikes her repeatedly until other students intervene and pull him away. We have more about this story over at KUT.org and we’ll include a link in our show notes for today as well. There’s been a flood of news this week out of Minnesota related to the federal government’s ongoing immigration crackdown there, but here in Texas, Governor Greg Abbott made headlines for saying the White House needed to quote recalibrate U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s tactics. The governor’s comments came just days after demonstrator Alex Pretti was shot and killed by federal agents in Minneapolis. And Abbott isn’t the only Texas Republican who has expressed concern or skepticism about ICE’s recent activity and the rhetoric around it. Though, as the Texas newsroom’s Blaise Ganey reports, this change in tone likely has more to do with the midterm elections than a true change in thinking.
Blaise Gainey [00:02:31] The November elections are steadily approaching, and Republicans were already anticipating a fierce battle to keep control of the U.S. House and Senate. But recent events around immigration enforcement in Minnesota, like the deaths of two U. S. Citizens, have intensified the situation. So had the detention of a five-year-old boy from Minneapolis at an ICE facility in Texas.
Brandon Rottinghaus [00:02:52] Normally these midterms are like a political earthquake, but this is an earthquake that spawned a tsunami.” Brandon Rottinghouse is a political scientist at the University of Houston. These images and the actions, although awful in so many ways, are problematic for Republicans and give Democrats a chance to show why they have been in opposition to this from the start.
Blaise Gainey [00:03:14] Republicans don’t need that, especially not with Democrats promising to impeach President Donald Trump if they’re able to gain control of Congress. It’s also become a focus for Republicans here in Texas, a state that’s long been one of Trump’s most enthusiastic partners on immigration. So some were caught off guard when Governor Abbott told conservative radio talk show host Mark Davis that the administration’s current approach on immigration was making the public lose respect for law enforcement.
Governer Abbott [00:03:41] They being the White House need to recalibrate on what needs to be done to make sure that that respect is going to be reinstilled.
Blaise Gainey [00:03:49] Abbott said that recalibration should also mean ICE refocusing on the removal of dangerous undocumented immigrants.
Governer Abbott [00:03:56] Without causing all the kinds of problems and fighting in communities that they are experiencing right now.
Blaise Gainey [00:04:02] Both of Texas U.S. Senators John Cornyn and Ted Cruz made similar comments.
John Cornyn [00:04:06] I think it’s a good idea to de-escalate.
Ted Cruz [00:04:09] Escalating the rhetoric doesn’t help and it actually loses credibility and so I would encourage the administration to be more measured.
Blaise Gainey [00:04:18] And Senator Cruz was joined by Texas Congressman Michael McCaul in calling for investigations into the shooting death of Alex Preti. So does this signal a shift in tone for Texas Republicans? Not according to Sergio Garcia Rios. It’s not necessarily a shift, it’s an adjustment. Garcia Rio is a professor at UT Austin’s LBJ School of Public Affairs. If you listen to more of those interviews, you can hear his point. Most messaging around protests in Minnesota still cast blame on Democrats and even on the victims. Here’s Senator Cruz talking about Pretti on his podcast.
Ted Cruz [00:04:51] He could have chosen to go there and not bring a firearm.
Blaise Gainey [00:04:56] And Cornyn did the same on the Mark Davis show.
Dr.Hepcat [00:04:58] The First Amendment is important, the right to peacefully demonstrate, but we’ve seen some of these protesters in Minneapolis and elsewhere cross a line they should not cross, which is interfering with law enforcement activity.
Blaise Gainey [00:05:13] So why the shift in some of this messaging? Garcia Rios thinks the talk of de-escalation is a sign that these issues have reached another level, when Texas Republicans feel the need to address this election year while still being tough on immigration and de-emigration.
Garcia Rios [00:05:28] It’s always been politicized for many years but it’s now becoming electoral and I think that’s where the adjustment is happening
Blaise Gainey [00:05:35] or as University of Houston political scientist Brennan Rodd…
Brandon Rottinghaus [00:05:38] House describes it.
Blaise Gainey [00:05:52] The kind of liabilities that could alienate voters, either making them vote for Democrats in November or not vote at all. Like for instance, Latino voters in the Rio Grande Valley who backed President Trump in 2024. Garcia Rio says it’s a hard line to walk for Republicans.
Garcia Rios [00:06:09] They want strong borders, they want secure communities, they want safety, but they don’t want their friends and families being deported.
Blaise Gainey [00:06:18] More broadly, both Garcia Rios and Roddinghaus believe any change in tone right now likely isn’t the result of a change of heart, but rather the realization that the immigration issue isn’t going away. I’m Blaise Ganey in Austin.
Jerry Quijano [00:06:32] Continuing on that immigration coverage, we wanted to share with you an excerpt of a conversation between former Austin Police Chief Arts Acevedo and Texas standards David Brown. Acevedos was asked about his opinion on ICE tactics, which he wrote about in an op-ed published by the Austin American Statesman.
Art Acevedo [00:06:51] If ICE would go back to their tactics that were really intelligence-led and data-driven like they’ve done in the past, they need to go back the border, and we need to bring some normalcy back to the operations that we’ve been witnessing across the country, and get rid of this reported 3,000 arrests a day, which, quite honestly, last time check the quotas are illegal in terms of law enforcement, I should be no different.
David Brown [00:07:20] If you had the ear of the Minneapolis police chief, what would you tell that person about how to navigate these times?
Art Acevedo [00:07:31] Well, you know, I know the chief very well. I’ve known him for many years. He’s a friend, he’s a colleague. And I would tell him, stay the course. You’re doing a great job of balancing, you know, the needs and the safety of your community, your officers. And you’re helping to keep ICE and Border Patrol when there’s conflict with the community. You’re done a good job of triaging those incidents when there’s a request for assistance. Or requests from your own community to respond. So he’s in a tough spot, I feel for him, but I think that based on everything that he and his men and women have been going through, that he has a lot to be proud of and we should support him and support the men and woman of ICE and demand that their leadership get back to what they know to be appropriate tactics and appropriate processes and focusing on dangerous criminals instead of. Going out and stopping everything that moves. It has a brown skin or might appear to be a person.
David Brown [00:08:29] Of color. Say more about the tactics that you would like to see when it comes to immigration officers. What specifically would you like to see them do differently?
Art Acevedo [00:08:38] Like to see is for them to go back to the way they’ve always operated, which is to not go out and racially profile, not go and just stop people without cause. And they go back to the days when they actually respected the rule of law and operated within the, you know, requirements of the Constitution. So they know how to do the job. And I think with Tom Holman, who is a career ice agent and a leader in that organization. At the helm, I am hopeful that he’ll go back to the methods that are appropriate, the methods that respect due process, and the methods to respect the rule of law. And most importantly, methods that targeted, are deliberative, and are not going out and just, you know, stopping people based on racial profiling and, quite honestly, with limited cause, probable cause, or reasonable suspicion. Themselves. Let’s see what happens, but I think with Tom in charge, I’m really hopeful we’re going to see a change, not just in Minneapolis, but across the country, where we’re gonna be doing things. They’ll be doing things the appropriate way and not the theatrical way that we’ve been seeing, quite honestly, the unconstitutional way that is really creating a lot of angst, I believe, amongst a lot the members of ICE and DHS and a lot distrust. So let’s see. I don’t know what happens, but I’m all for it.
David Brown [00:10:00] Ship will be turned around. One final thing, you wrote in your op-ed that when trust collapses, criminals win. Could you say more about that concern?
Art Acevedo [00:10:10] Absolutely. Look, our number one commodity that we have to build its emotional capital and that is trust. And when the public does not trust law enforcement, people, whether they’re victims or they’re witnesses, they go back into the shadows, they don’t cooperate, they don’t call. And so that’s a loss for public safety, that’s the loss for all Americans, and that’s loss for community safety. And, so… Let’s hope that we see a change in the tactics, and let’s hope that we’ll see some more return to traditional law enforcement methodologies, and with that, let’s hope that when we start seeing the distrust that is spreading, staff and the wave of rebuilding trust start, which is in the best interest of all of us here in this country.
Jerry Quijano [00:10:58] That was former Austin Police Chief Art Acevedo talking with Texas Standards David Brown. We’ll have a link to that full conversation at kut.org slash signal and in the podcast show notes for today. Now as we’ve been talking about on the show the current political climate is on virtually everyone’s minds and it has become a big consideration for the folks who make the decisions on how cities are continuing to operate. For the Austin City Council the It came up when discussing a potential contract to put cameras in parks to help with policing. These cameras would have AI capabilities and questions about how this data will be stored and who could potentially monitor it had city council postponed the vote for a second time. For more about that, we are speaking with KUT city hall reporter, Luz Moreno Lozano. Luz, welcome back.
Luz Moreno-Lozano [00:11:45] Hey, Jerry.
Jerry Quijano [00:11:46] So give us a little bit of background, what was the proposal here?
Luz Moreno-Lozano [00:11:49] So it was a $2 million contract. It was, I believe, four years. But it would install essentially these mobile AI-enabled cameras in parking lots of some of the city’s most popular parks. If for anyone who lives here and who goes hiking, car break-ins are sometimes a thing at these parks. And what the city is trying to do is kind of crack down on some of these car break ins and some other crimes to vandalism and those kinds of things that also happen at parks.
Jerry Quijano [00:12:19] So what has been the concern among citizens here in Austin about these cameras?
Luz Moreno-Lozano [00:12:23] Yeah. I think one of the biggest things is how these cameras store and share data. These AI-enabled cameras can do all kinds of things, facial recognition, voice, audible commands. There’s lots of things that these things can do. But the biggest concern was facial recognition. And if someone is caught on camera, is that being shared with some of these outside agencies like ice and some of these other. Arresting agencies, we’re putting some of these vulnerable communities in a tough spot.
Jerry Quijano [00:12:55] Yeah, and for the people who argue that these cameras are necessary, what’s the reason they say?
Luz Moreno-Lozano [00:12:59] Yeah, the city’s parks department was saying that these cameras have helped deter crime. We saw some numbers from the city that was saying like at Mount Bonnell, for example, they had 373 car break-ins in 2022. After these cameras were installed, in 2025, we saw just 88 of those kinds of crimes. So they are helping in a way to kind of, one, deter crime, two, we heard from APD say that these cameras do help kind of give. Yeah, some identity to people who are breaking into cars.
Jerry Quijano [00:13:33] Okay, so this contract was supposed to come up for a vote yesterday, I believe? What happened?
Luz Moreno-Lozano [00:13:38] So, yeah, so the city council had a work session yesterday where they were just kind of discussing what was at the table, what was the contract doing, does it include facial recognition, what can we change to make sure we’re balancing this need to keep parks safe, but also respect the identity and privacy of people who go to parks. Um, and so with this ice, um, climate that we’re seeing, um the council decided that this just wasn’t gonna move forward. So they were supposed to vote on the contract on Thursday, but they pulled the agenda item after hearing from the community and from council members about some of these concerns.
Jerry Quijano [00:14:11] Okay, we have about 20 seconds left here. Is there a possibility that this contract, this item, might come up before council again?
Luz Moreno-Lozano [00:14:17] It is possible. This is the second time we’ve seen this contract. I think after hearing what we heard yesterday, it could come back. I talked to some council members this morning that basically was like, it’s an indefinite pause on the contract. So we’ll see it play out. It did come back the second times. So maybe the third time’s a charm.
Jerry Quijano [00:14:35] Well, we will see and then when and if that happens, we will get you updated right here on Austin Signal. We have been speaking with KUT City Hall reporter, Luz Moreno Lozano. Thank you for your reporting, Luz. Thanks so much. And thank you out there for tuning into Austin Signal, hope you’re having a nice Wednesday. We will be back after this break. Thank you for tuning in to listener-powered public radio. This is Austin Signal on KUT News. It is Black History Month all February long, and our friend Miles Bloxson has been chronicling black Austin artists for years for our sister station KUTX. Let’s listen to a little Austin music history right here.
Dr.Hepcat [00:15:20] Why we can’t agree?
Miles Bloxson [00:15:22] Dr. Hep Cat born Albert LaVeda Durst was an American blues pianist, singer, baseball commentator, and radio DJ. Born January 9th, 1913 in Austin, Texas, he learned piano as a child and grew up playing barrel house blues. Mentored by fellow pianist Robert Shaw, whom he credited as his most important teacher, LaVeta performed everywhere from fish fries and rent parties to juke joints. Music wasn’t his only lane. In the 1940s, Durst became an announcer for the Austin Black Senators, a Negro League baseball team. And after catching the attention of future Texas Governor John Connolly, then manager of KVET, he was hired in 1948 as a baseball commentator and DJ, becoming the first black radio DJ in Texas, under the name Dr. Hefkat. He hosted the Rosewood Scramble, becoming known for his jive talk and helping bridge the gap between black and white audiences. At a time when shared listening spaces were rare. He even published a book, The Jives of Dr. Hepcat, which served as both a dictionary and a guide to jive talk for his fans.
Dr.Hepcat [00:16:29] I’m turning evil, I’m gonna give you plenty misery.
Miles Bloxson [00:16:41] Laveda was a major promoter here in Austin, bringing prominent African-American acts to the historic Doris Miller Auditorium, which is located on the same East Austin grounds as the Rosewood Recreation Center, where he worked as director of athletics from the mid-40s until his retirement. And while his career took many turns, music never left him. And in 1949, he released the singles Hattie Green and Hep Cat’s Boogie.
Dr.Hepcat [00:17:07] Just as soon as my bonus comes
Miles Bloxson [00:17:18] In the 1950s, he shifted towards gospel music, becoming active in church life and later serving as associate pastor at Olivet Baptist Church. During this time, he helped write the influential gospel song, Let’s Talk About Jesus.
Dr.Hepcat [00:17:31] About Jesus
Miles Bloxson [00:17:36] Lavedo was also a devoted community leader, and when he retired from the Parks Department in 1979, that did not go unnoticed. Willem Nadeau Coe, along with the City of Austin, recognized him for his distinguished work with the city’s African-American youth, and in 1995, Durst was inducted into the unofficial Rock Radio Hall of Fame and has also been credited as one of the inventors of Rock and Roll Radio. Albert LaVeda Durst died in 1995 in Austin at the age of 82. The spirit of his work, his music, his commitment to community, and the trail he blazed for black radio voices just like mine continues to live on.
Dr.Hepcat [00:18:19] As I can be
Miles Bloxson [00:18:22] For more on LaVeta Dr. Hepcat Durst, visit KUTX.org. For KUTx, I’m Miles Bloxson.
Jerry Quijano [00:18:38] Thank you for being with us here on Austin Signal. Hope you’re having a good Wednesday. We’re gonna talk a little bit more about music here on the show. The deadline is approaching to submit an entry into this year’s NPR Tiny Desk Contest. The lucky winner earns a spot on an NPR back tour and they get to do their own tiny desk at the headquarters in Washington, D.C. And this year, one of our own will be part of the team judging the entries into the contest. That is Alex Marrero, he is host of Horizontes, which airs Sunday nights on KUTX, and he’s joining us live on the show today. Alex, thanks for coming in.
Alex Marrero [00:19:12] Hey Jerry, thanks for having me.
Jerry Quijano [00:19:14] Absolutely, we’re really glad to have you in. So let’s talk first a little bit about the contest. What are the basic requirements for people to get entered?
Alex Marrero [00:19:22] So basically you have to be an unsigned artist, that’s it. And you basically record yourself, they will give you, if you go to npr.org slash tiny desk contest, they have all the parameters that you need to follow to videotape yourself and to put it up on YouTube and send it to them.
Jerry Quijano [00:19:41] Okay, okay, so people shouldn’t be DM-ing you their videos.
Alex Marrero [00:19:44] You know, I’ve asked them not to but they still do and that’s okay I just send them the correct information because you know, that’s how it is. Yeah. Yes
Jerry Quijano [00:19:51] Yeah, yeah. So how did you end up getting lined up as a judge for this year?
Alex Marrero [00:19:54] You know, I have no idea. Okay. Okay. I’m sure. Yeah. I think it’s a combination of, uh, Horizontes having taken over Horizontas and just being, being a part of that. And I’ve noticed throughout the year and a half that I’ve been doing the show that Felix Contreras, who’s the host of Alt Latino, he’s been kind of commenting on my stuff and you know, we’ve communicated. So I think he might’ve recommended me for it. Okay. So that’s probably one of the connections.
Jerry Quijano [00:20:21] Okay, very cool. Well, yeah, I want to ask you a little bit about Odesanthus, but the deadline, like I said, is fast approaching. It’s coming up. So when is that?
Alex Marrero [00:20:30] The deadline is Monday, February 9th at 1159 p.m. Eastern.
Jerry Quijano [00:20:36] Time. Okay. Eastern time. That’s, that’s an important little addendum.
Alex Marrero [00:20:39] Yeah, because musicians, we put it, we get right close to the edge! Same goes for journalists, same goes for…
Jerry Quijano [00:20:44] Goes for journalists and goes so remember to everybody out there a reminder I rather that we are in the central time zone so you need to post that a little bit a little bit early but let’s move on to or ease on this how long you’ve been hosting the show now
Alex Marrero [00:20:55] I got my first episode was July 2024. So I’m coming in on a year and a half already. Okay.
Jerry Quijano [00:21:02] Okay, so we have 24 hours of radio seven days a week on KUT on KU tx for somebody who might not have heard oldies on this What do you feature on the show?
Alex Marrero [00:21:13] Lisontes is a radio show that has existed for 50 years and it is basically the music of Latin America, Brazil, and I like to say the beyonds because it ties in, you know, whatever fits the Latin music paradigm or I like the push the envelope a little bit. Basically, anything that fits the African diaspora, I think, fits the bill.
Jerry Quijano [00:21:37] And is this your first radio show?
Alex Marrero [00:21:39] This is my first venture into radio.
Jerry Quijano [00:21:42] Okay, okay. Well you have a great radio voice, you know, you’re suited for the gig. Well, what are you gonna?
Alex Marrero [00:21:46] Learning about it? It’s very how isolated it is. Because as a musician, I’ve been a musician in town for 30 years. And as a physician, you have immediate reaction and you know, I know if I’m in a room with five people or 5000 people, but I work really hard on the show. And I put it out there and then it’s just like I have no idea what’s going on out there, but that’s, that’s that’s what’s taken me the most to get used to is the silence. Cause there’s no, no feedback. There is. I mean, I haven’t gotten fired. So that’s the best feedback, I guess.
Jerry Quijano [00:22:24] I guess well, that’s what makes it nice whenever you come into a conversation or a studio right now And we there’s two of us right you can actually exactly off of somebody versus you know Sometimes I say these really bad jokes, and they just go off into the ether and no, but there’s no they’re just kind of like bouncing Oh, that all
Alex Marrero [00:22:39] Oh, that’s all I do is tell bad jokes. Yeah.
Jerry Quijano [00:22:42] Okay, so you have been doing the show for about a year and a half you said I understand that like this Sunday’s episode is Going to feature something new for your show
Alex Marrero [00:22:50] So about a year ago, I created this thing called a spotlight series episode. And what I do is I invite a guest, a musician to be my guest. I asked him to bring whatever kind of music and has influenced them, whatever their project may be at the time. I asked them to bring anywhere between six and nine songs. And we have a conversation based on those songs. So it’s still music based, which is important to me. I want the show to be still very much about the music. So this weekend is a little twist on that theme. I have Trio Los Vigilantes who have been an Austin music staple for almost 30 years. They are going to be at Studio 1A with me and they’re going to perform. It’s the same format, but it’s actually with a live band. We’re going hear the music performed live and have a conversation about it all. So I’m super excited about that. And that’s airing when? That airs this Sunday. On Orisontis, 7 to 9 p.m. Central Time, or you can stream it later on kutx.org.
Jerry Quijano [00:23:51] Okay, and one last reminder at the Tiny Desk Contest, the deadline to enter is Monday 1159 Eastern Time. Remember that, people, before you end up realizing too late that you can no longer get in on that. We have been speaking with Alex Marrero. He is, again, host of Horizontes, Sunday nights on KUTX, and he’s a judge for this year’s Tiny Desks Contest. Alex, thanks for coming on the show. We appreciate you. Really appreciate you, too. And thank you out there for tuning in to Austin Signal. We really appreciate you. One tiny note before we get out of here today, wanted to send a special message to our family at Texas Public Radio in San Antonio. We are mourning the loss of Ruben Garcia, who is the radio voice of TPR. If you’ve ever driven from Austin to San Antonio and listened to KUT and TPR, you have heard Ruben’s voice. He was 66 years old. And he was an incredible human being. I’m glad to know him. And we thank you for having this community here with us on the radio. This is Austin Signal. We’ll be back tomorrow.
This transcript was transcribed by AI, and lightly edited by a human. Accuracy may vary. This text may be revised in the future.
