Hispanic

La Pitada

554 miles from AT&T Stadium you will find a Dallas Cowboys celebratory tradition that is unique in Texas. You might expect it in Dallas or Arlington, but to find this three decade tradition thriving in a Brownsville neighborhood, is both surprising and heart-warming. It is called La Pitada. Texas Standard commentator WF Strong has more.

Largest teacher prep program in Texas at risk of losing accreditation

A long awaited report on Maternal Mortality in Texas is now two months delayed and may not be available for the next legislative session. We’ll have the latest. Other stories we’re tracking: amid a statewide teacher shortage, the biggest teacher accreditation program in Texas now facing the possible loss of accreditation. We’ll hear more. And after several local ordinances to decriminalize marijuana pass on the November ballot, a pushback from many local officials. Also a singer from El Paso who’s new release, Frontera, is turning a spotlight on latino voices in country music. Our conversation with Valerie Ponzio, the week in Texas politics with the Texas Tribune and much more today on the Texas Standard:

Texas Standard: October 17, 2022

Is South Texas ground zero for a political shift in 2022? Republicans, Democrats and the Latino vote are in the spotlight. Politics watchers say three republican Texas women, Latinas themselves, stand to lead an historic shift in voting patterns. We’ll take a closer look at what’s behind that. Also, has Mark Zuckerberg’s company gone too Meta? As valuations of the company formerly known as Facebook continue to slide, a reality check on whether its Metaverse strategy is grounded in reality. And from far west Texas, a sweet sound 50 years in the making. And for a family, a dream come true.
Those stories and much more when today on the Texas Standard:

Texas Standard: June 23, 2022

The head of the Uvalde school police force put on administrative leave amid growing questions about law enforcement’s response. Investigative reporter Tony Plohetski with the latest on a back and forth over what actually happened in those long minutes before police stormed the school shooter in Uvalde. Also as Capitol Hill takes up a bipartisan gun safety bill, Texas Republicans lambasting the Republican Texas Senator at the center of talks. We’ll hear more. And what does it mean to be resilient? A Texas coach on why we get resilience wrong and what science suggests we should get better at. Those stories and much more today on the Texas Standard:

Texas Standard: June 20, 2022

A green light for COVID-19 vaccines for kids under 5. A Texas doctor on the importance at this stage of the pandemic fight, we’ll have the latest. Other stories we’re tracking: hispanics and COVID-19 vaccinations. What a new study tells us about vaccine hesitancy and health information. In other news, Texas republicans at their convention in Houston approve a platform including the false claim that President Biden’s election was illegitimate. We’ll have more from that event. Also reflections on Juneteenth and the progress and perils in the pursuit of racial justice. The comments of UT scholar Peniel Joseph and much more today on the Texas Standard:

Texas Standard: October 7, 2021

A federal judge blocks Texas’ near total abortion ban, for now. The state has appealed, leaving abortion providers and patients in limbo. We’ll have the latest. Other stories we’re tracking: Governor Greg Abbott is joined at the border by 9 other republican governors, backed by an array of military vehicles and accusing the President of causing what Abbott called a humanitarian crisis at the border. We’ll talk with USA Today’s John Moritz, who was there. Also remembering a Latino civil rights champion who fought segregation in Texas schools. And how Texas music is transforming a remote ghost town. Those stories and much more today on the Texas Standard:

Texas Standard: August 20, 2021

Some jaws drop at the capitol as a handful of Texas Democrats end the walkout and return a quorum to the lower chamber. Also, 70% vaccination rates, room in ICU units, and more. Is there something El Paso’s doing that the rest of the state could learn from? And claims and questions about cloth masks amid the spread of the Delta variant: what makes a safe mask? Plus a civil rights complaint that Port Arthur residents hope will clear the air. Those stories and much more when the Texas Standard gets underway right after this:

Texas Standard: May 24, 2021

Hurricane Harvey devastated Houston. We’ll look at why it’s not getting any federal money for flood mitigation managed by the Texas General Land Office. Also, Texas uses gas taxes to help to maintain and build new roads. So how does it make up the loss in revenue from more people driving electric vehicles? Some say the potential answer sends the wrong message. Plus, PTAs in wealthy parts of one Texas school district have actually been paying staff salaries. Why the practice is ending and what could replace it. And there’s been a lot of back and forth about how the capital city makes room for people experiencing homelessness. Austin voters said one thing, now state lawmakers may add another. Where things stand now. Those stories and more today on the Texas Standard:

Texas Standard: May 12, 2021

A 15 billion windfall for Texas, relief funds much larger than the pandemic’s projected economic impact here. Where will the money go? Todd Gilman of the Dallas Morning News with more on how federal pandemic relief money could lead to raises for firefighters, infrastructure changes, and more. Also, the boom in the hispanic population in Texas. Does it equal political gains for the GOP? Arelis Hernandez of the Washington Post on how the numbers add up. And FDA approval for kids as young as 12 to to get vaccinated against COVID-19. How soon will shots be ready for Texas adolescents? Those stories and more today on the Texas Standard:

Ofrenda: A Decimation Of People, A Celebration Of Life

Today is the day when we present our Ofrendas, our offering of sounds honoring the lives of those who have left us. A decimation of people a celebration of life. We’ll take a look at the soothing tradition of remembering the dead. On a year where Texas has been hit again by natural disasters, a global pandemic and an economy that is fighting to stay afloat, we still have a presidential election coming up. We’ll see Texans pulling together to feed each other. And how the mystery of the Monarch butterfly invites us to think about re-birth and the afterlife. Those stories and more today on the Texas Standard:

Texas Standard: October 5, 2020

A one page letter signed by seven of the attorney general’s top aides ask for an investigation of the Texas attorney general. We’ll hear more about the complain, and how Paxton and other top Texas officials are responding. Also, the president and other top republicans urging supporters to be poll watchers. Just who can become a poll watcher, what does that involve, and what are the limits to their activities? And the hispanic republican from Nixon to Trump plus a whole lot more today on the Texas Standard:

Texas Standard: September 2, 2020

It is the first detailed look at the impact of the pandemic on state services and it includes a billion dollars in cutbacks. A thick document detailing how hard COVID-19 will hit Texas’ budgetary bottom line, the biggest hit to social services. Asher Price of the Austin American Statesman got the story and he joins us. Also, a Texas state senator demanding congress step forward to help find out why so many apparent killings at Fort Hood. And does a Texas city really hold the nation’s top spot in a jump in crime? A Politifact check and more today on the Texas Standard:

Texas Standard: October 29, 2018

As a nation reels in the aftermath of a synagogue shooting in Pittsburgh, congregants gather in Sutherland Springs to reflect on what happened there a year earlier. Also, as texans continue to set records at the polls, political experts keep talking about the so-called sleeping giant. But a case can be made that there’s a better metaphor for the power of the Hispanic vote in Texas. We’ll hear about that. Plus the Army Corps of Engineers and the Texas general land office pushing a massive multi-billion dollar plan to put a wall between part of the Texas gulf coast and the next major storm. All that and then some today on the Texas Standard:

Texas Standard: October 18, 2018

It started with a few hundred headed for the U.S. border, now 4 thousand strong: the Honduran caravan en route for the U.S. border, we’ll have the latest. Also, days away from the start of early voting, and a once reliably Republican congressional district now one of the most closely watched of the election season. Why the Texas 32nd matters. And they’re the fastest growing demographic in Texas and politicians are eager to court them. But how much do the political parties really understand about what makes young Latinos and Latinas tick? A new survey offers some answers. All that and a whole lot more today on the Texas Standard:

Texas Standard: September 11, 2018

Public frustration boils over into the streets after manslaughter charges in the fatal shooting of an innocent man by a Dallas police officer. We’ll have the latest. Also, after 2016, do you trust political polls? With election day now just 8 weeks away, the horserace begins in earnest. We’ll explore how the polls became such a major institution in American politics. And a historic moment for the Boy Scouts as they start recruiting Texas girls. Why they’re doing this and how it’s going so far. Plus the race to save the Texas horny toad and so much more today on the Texas Standard:

Texas Standard: September 30, 2018

Latinos tipping the scales this election year? Turns out its not just the Democrats who stand to gain from a get out the vote effort, we’ll look at the numbers. Also, a Texas city now topping the nation as the most dangerous place to drive in the U.S. A combination of high speed, heavy congestion and infrastructure to blame. We’ll have more. Plus oil prices rising, but why? We’ll look at the good the bad and the ugly. Also a photo of an emaciated Texas horse goes viral sparking questions about the real definition of animal cruelty. We’ll explore and a whole lot more on todays Texas Standard:

Texas Standard: September 7, 2018

The Trump Administration wants changes to a long-held agreement affecting young immigrants held in detention. We’ll take a look at what that would mean here in Texas. Also, it’s been quite a week in Brazil. An attack on a political candidate, a major fire, and now it’s Independence Day. We’ll talk to a Brazilian with a Texas perspective. And do you know what a gun is? It’s actually a lot more complicated than you might think. Why the question may be more important than the debate over 3D printing weapons. Plus we’ll question some of the common narratives about Texas history. And we’ll take a little escape to the movies. All that, politics, the Typewriter Rodeo and so much more on today’s Texas Standard:

Texas Standard: September 4, 2018

Chaos as the Kavanaugh confirmation hearings kick off on capitol hill. But as the focus falls on the high court, another judicial transformation underway? We’ll take a look. Also, it’s long been called the sleeping giant in Texas politics: the latino vote. Texas Democrats are trying wake that giant and do something that’s been difficult in the past: get them to the polls in bigger numbers. We’ll explore. And labor groups scoring victories in a push for paid leave, but are they wasting time and money? Plus chasing Lightin’ in Houston: a 1959 recording of bluesman Lightnin’ Hopkins back in print. We’ll explore his hold on Texas and American music, plus a whole lot more today on the Texas Standard:

Texas Standard: August 31, 2018

Down to the wire: Canada racing to do what Mexico did: strike a deal with the U.S. and save NAFTA. If they can’t, what will it mean for Texas? We’ll take a look. Also, politics watchers nationwide are enthralled by the Senate race in Texas. One of the most serious challenges from the Democrats in decades and hispanics may hold the key. Question is: will they turn out to vote? But more than that, how will they vote? Republicans rethinking their strategy. Also, business is booming in construction across Texas, just one problem: where are the workers? Those stories and a whole lot more on todays Texas Standard:

Texas Standard: July 3, 2018

Worried about a second American civil war? If it’s war we’re worried about, we may be facing the wrong direction. As Russia hosts the World Cup, no one seems to be paying attention to what the Kremlin is doing this moment in Syria: a bombing campaign and a fight that could eclipse the battle for Aleppo. Why few seem to care, and is that not Vladmir Putin’s calculus? Also, great expectations among Texans as they consider the promises of Mexico’s president elect. And the scourge of diabetes among hispanics in Texas, we’ll have details. And remembering the long forgotten trains that ferried orphans to America’s west. All that and much more on today’s Texas Standard: