Point of Order: Bending toward justice
Evan Smith, CEO of The Texas Tribune. (Audio unavailable. Click here to listen on texastribune.org.) In the latest episode of our podcast about the Texas Legislature, Evan Smith talks to state Rep. Nicole Collier, chairwoman of the House Criminal Jurisprudence Committee, about the George Floyd Act, bail reform, marijuana, public safety funding and other items on the agenda in the 2021 session.
After a year of racial reckoning, Black lawmakers believe they can finally eliminate Confederate Heroes Day in Texas
For years, a handful of Texas lawmakers have tried in vain to pass legislation that would remove or replace the holiday celebrating leaders of the Confederate army. The birthdays of Lee and Davis used to be separate Texas holidays, but lawmakers consolidated them in 1973 to create Confederate Heroes Day. State Rep. Shawn Thierry, D-Houston, filed the other in support. He plans to hold a press conference with Collier and other representatives at noon on the state holiday. In 2015, state Rep. Donna Howard, D-Austin, filed a bill to rename the holiday Civil War Remembrance Day, but it died in committee.