Free Republic

The most consequential falsehood in American public policy today is the idea that any racial disparity in any institution is by definition the result of racial discrimination. If a cancer research lab, for example, does not have 13 percent black oncologists—the black share of the national population—it is by definition a racist lab that discriminates against competitively qualified black oncologists; if an airline company doesn’t have 13 percent black pilots, it is by definition a racist airline company that discriminates against competitively qualified black pilots; and if a prison population contains more than 13 percent black prisoners, our law enforcement...

As government schools continue to show their commitment to promoting sex and gender ideology to children, Austin Independent School District is preparing to host its annual “Pride Week” pushing teachers and kids to “celebrate LGBTQIA+ students, staff and families.” Austin ISD said the event, set for March 18-23, will “highlight the district’s commitment to creating a safe, supportive, and inclusive environment.” According to the district’s website, each campus will receive a guide of suggested resources and activities staff can put on for students. Staff are advised to reach out to coordinators of their campus Genders and Sexualities Alliances (formerly known...

When conducting general surveys, Mr. Rasmussen noticed that most people expressing extreme leftist views share three characteristics: (1) They are very urban, (2) they hold postgraduate university degrees, and (3) they are relatively wealthy. People meeting all these criteria make up about one percent of the general population. Anyway, Mr. Rasmussen decided to poll a national sample of these people: urbanites with post-grad degrees who had income of more than $150,000 per year. He found that their economic situations and political views are remote from those of most Americans. While most Americans have been suffering hardship during the Biden years,...

Click on the link to hear Tucker Carlson explain on X "Why I'm Interviewing Vladimir Putin." The video is about 4-1/2 minutes.

As President Joe Biden’s border crisis continues, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is calling a measured proposed in the U.S. Senate “a complete disaster.” The proposal is supposed to tighten current immigration and asylum laws, but also fast-tracks eligible asylum claims. “The open borders policies it enshrines would destroy our country,” posted Paxton on X. In addition to encouraging nearly 2 million illegal aliens annually to enter the country, paying out over $1 billion to the toxic NGOs that settle illegal immigrants all over the nation, empowering Mayorkas to abuse the asylum process on his arbitrary whim, and ending catch-and-release,...

According to a new report from The Dallas Express, the Dallas Independent School District has published a resource guide that advises children on how to change genders. Named the “LGBTQ+ Resources for Dallas ISD & Surrounding Communities,” the document recommends various “transgender” clinics, gives resources on how to socially, legally, and medically transition, and lists books for elementary students about gender-confused children. Robyn Harris, the executive director of Dallas ISD’s communications team, told The Dallas Express that the document is only available to adults who request it. She specified that the adults are to be parents or other school employees....

A new bombshell report reveals Texas A&M University’s partnership with the government of Qatar could be a major threat to national security. Since 2003 Texas A&M has operated a branch in the middle eastern country of Qatar, which was set up through an agreement between Texas A&M and the Qatar Foundation for Education, Science, and Community Development, which has close links to the Qatar royal family. Now, a report from the Institute for the Study of Global Antisemitism and Policy reveals Qatar’s undisclosed funding into Texas A&M has resulted in full Qatari ownership of over 500 research projects. Texas A&M...

Attorney General Ken Paxton has returned to work following more than three months of leave after being impeached by the Texas House. He was acquitted on all charges by a majority of state senators, with only two Republicans—Kelly Hancock (North Richland Hills) and Robert Nichols (Jacksonville)—voting to convict. Now, Paxton told Texas Scorecard, he’s excited to continue serving Texans. "It’s been hard to sit on the sidelines for four months and watch things happen and not have the ability to go impact them. That’s what I ran for." He said that ultimately, the blame rests with House Speaker Dade Phelan...

Following the acquittal of Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton on impeachment charges, Paxton joined Tucker Carlson for an interview to discuss the state of Texas politics. Carlson drew attention to the ongoing crisis at Texas’ southern border and asked Paxton how he felt U.S. Sen. John Cornyn (R–TX) has handled it. “I have no idea why he doesn’t seem to address this on a regular basis,” answered Paxton. “Thank God Ted Cruz has, but John Cornyn has been basically vacant on this issue.” When Carlson asked why, Paxton said, “He’s been in Washington too long… And I can’t think of...

Both Austin and Houston are part of ‘C40 Cities,’ an alliance of mayors seeking to impact climate change and “cut their emissions in half by 2030.” Two Texas cities are participating in an emissions-cutting program that seeks to end meat and dairy consumption. According to the organization, “C40 is a global network of nearly 100 mayors of the world’s leading cities that are united in action to confront the climate crisis.” Although largely funded by Democrat billionaire Michael Bloomberg, C40 has other donors including FedEx, Google, and the Clinton Foundation. Both Austin and Houston are listed as participating cities, with...

Richardson Independent School District, in North Texas, applied for and received a grant to promote “LGBTQ+ identity” in its schools.The district won the grant from the It Gets Better Project, a nonprofit organization with a mission to “uplift, empower, and connect lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer youth around the globe.”Richardson ISD is using the grant money to revive its on-campus Gay-Straight Alliance club, now known as the Gender & Sexuality Alliance (GSA).This is the second year the It Gets Better Project has awarded grant money to schools as part of its “50 States, 50 Grants, 5000 Voices” program, designed...

The City of Austin hosted its own LGBT parade featuring drag queens—and multiple taxpayer-funded participants. Taxpayer-funded institutions in attendance at the parade included the Austin Police Department, Austin EMS, and the Austin Fire Department. Notable sponsors of the event were University of Texas’ Division of Diversity and Community Engagement, Kroger, and Austin Community College District. APD officers were among the first group to walk the parade, where many officers were seen wearing rainbow bracelets. Following them was an APD cop car decked out in rainbow designs with their car reading, “LGBTQ+ Officers and Allies Supporting and Protecting You.” Following APD...

Three years ago Zoom settled with the FTC over a claim of deceptive marketing around security claims, having been accused of overstating the strength of the encryption it offered. Now the videoconferencing platform could be headed for a similar tangle in Europe in relation to its privacy small print.The recent terms & conditions controversy sequence goes like this: A clause added to Zoom’s legalese back in March 2023 grabbed attention on Monday after a post on Hacker News claimed it allowed the company to use customer data to train AI models “with no opt out”. (This Stack Diary report was...

AUSTIN [TX] — Austin Independent School District announced it will use buses to transport children and their families as well as staff to the “Austin Pride Parade” on August 12. “We are proud to celebrate our LGBTQIA+ students, staff, and families,” AISD said on their website, “and highlight our commitment to creating a safe, supportive, and inclusive environment for all!” The parade, which will start at the Texas Capitol, runs 1.2 miles and ends at Congress Bridge. According to the AISD website, the district encourages students to wear “Pride costumes and rainbow colors” and will also provide a limited number...

As leftist programs in public universities continue to draw more attention, taxpayer-funded University of Texas is promoting LGBT behavior through its Gender and Sexuality Center. The center’s goal, according to the website, is to “provide opportunities for all members of the UT Austin community to explore, organize, and promote learning around issues of gender and sexuality.” One event the center hosts is its “Lavender Graduation,” a graduation ceremony exclusively for “LGBTQIA+” people and their “allies.” Students cross a lavender stage and receive a “Lavender Graduation certificate,” as well as a rainbow tassel and stole. Other events like “Trans Thursdays” and...

As higher education continues to cater to “woke” ideals, Texas taxpayers are funding an extensive “Office of LGBTQIA Education & Engagement” at Texas Tech University, with the LGBT-oriented Campus Pride Index giving the university a 5-star rating. Campus Pride rates universities on their “LGBTQ-friendliness,” and the only other Texas universities to hold 5 stars are the University of Texas at Dallas and the University of Texas at Arlington. “The deterioration of our public universities is undeniable,” Brady Gray, president of Texas Family Project, told Texas Scorecard. “Less than a month ago, Texas Tech canceled a class on ‘Witchcraft, Bruxas &...

Texas Christian University is offering a course on the "Queer Art of Drag," where students will be taught about "drag performance as an outlet for social critique, pedagogy, and queer worldmaking." The course will be taught by Nino Testa, whose preferred pronouns are he/him when going by his name, but when wearing a dress and wig as the drag persona "Maria von Clapp" are she/her. "The gender binary is enforced through compulsory norms, harassment, and violence in service of a white-cis-heteropatriarchy," the syllabus for the spring 2023 course says, adding that "theatricalizing gender" can expand "the possible queer worlds that...

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott extended the state’s ban on male-born competitors in female scholastic sports by signing legislation to include collegiate athletics. Flanked by state lawmakers and female athletes, the Republican signed Senate Bill 15, which builds on the state’s 2021 law prohibiting biological males from participating in girls’ sports in K-12 public schools. “Today is an important day for female athletes across the state of Texas, including little girls who aspire to one day compete in college sports,” Mr. Abbott said. “The Save Women’s Sports Act protects young women at Texas colleges and universities by prohibiting men from competing...

Texas is suing the U.S. Department of Education for threatening to withhold as much as $6 billion in federal funds from schools that don’t adopt “transgender” ideology. The Office of the Attorney General filed a lawsuit Wednesday challenging the Biden Administration’s interpretation of Title IX, a federal statute enacted in 1972 to protect girls and women that prohibits discrimination “on the basis of sex” in educational institutions. In 2021, Biden’s Department of Education issued guidance to schools expanding “sex” to include “sexual orientation” and “gender identity.” According to the lawsuit, the new interpretation of Title IX seeks to “radically transform...

Ken Paxton’s most egregious crimes were not those given as excuses for impeachment by 61 Democrats and 60 Republicans in the Texas House. His true, and most inexcusable crime, was to challenge the autocratic rule of the Lone Star State by an unholy alliance of leftists Democrats and crony, anti-free market business Republicans. It has long been an open secret in the Texas Capitol that the establishment lobby group Texans for Lawsuit Reform never liked Ken Paxton. TLR had reportedly grown frustrated with Paxton using the powers of the Office of the Attorney General to aggressively combat the Biden administration,...