Kamala in Houston

I was glad to hear that Kamala would be holding a rally in Houston. Word was that Beyoncé might make an appearance, which certainly brought out the crowds. Before the rally, I also heard that Willie Nelson would be making an appearance, along with several women who had experienced the mindless brutality of Texas' anti-abortion laws. Some call Texas "ground zero" in the abortion battle, and the Texas laws are certainly draconian. 

Written mostly by men with no medical training, the Texas laws threaten to jail doctors FOR LIFE if they assist a patient in getting an abortion. What kind of fucked-up....words begin to fail when the bile starts rising. There are allegedly some exceptions to the NO abortions law, but the law is so badly worded that doctors are unsure what is allowed and what is not, and many are choosing to not assist. The Texas law even allows for any Texas citizen to collect a BOUNTY if they turn in someone who is trying to obtain an abortion. Turning Texas citizens against themselves? That's Republicans for you!

As a result of these laws, the infant mortality rate in Texas is up over 50%! Way to go, assholes!

Texas has been ruled by Republicans for decades now. There has not been a Democrat elected to a statewide office in Texas since 1994, and both houses of the state legislature are continually dominated by Republicans. Extreme gerrymandering engineered by Republicans have cemented Republican rule. The Texas Constitution prohibits citizen referendums, and so the only constitutional amendments allowed to reach the ballot (like adding abortion to the constitution as many other states are doing, or legalizing cannabis, for instance) are crafted by the state legislature. 

I found the Friday rally in Houston on C-SPAN and joined as an army of doctors were on-stage talking about how OB-GYN's in this state were now afraid to practice their specialty for fear of being tossed in jail. Many are choosing to leave the state entirely, reducing Texas women's options even further. Medical schools are reporting reduced numbers of new students choosing to go into Obstetrics, dimming the future in Texas even further.

Republicans used to talk about the dangers of "Big Brother" government telling you what to do and how to run your life, and now they are doing exactly that when it comes to women's reproductive freedom. Many Republicans want to abolish CONTRACEPTIVES entirely and IVF!! It won't work, but I am afraid it's going to get even uglier for women in Texas. Republicans are so zealous (and stupid) they cannot see that they are overstepping their boundaries. They cannot see the resentment building up in Texas women, and men. The callous insensitivity of their abortion laws is epic and ridiculous.

We will prevail. We shall not forever remain under the boot heel of the regressive Republicans. Change is coming. California used to be deep red until the Republicans tried to pass Prop 187, which angered the large Latino population so much, the state turned blue rather quickly. Did you know that Latinos now make up the largest segment of the Texas population? Over 40% of Texas is now Hispanic or Latino. White folks now represent 39% of the Texas population. So you go ahead and clamp down HARD on immigration bullshit, GOP. See where it gets you.

Anyway, Kamala Harris' campaign was brilliant, IMHO, in coming to Houston and talking almost exclusively about women's reproductive freedom. It doesn't get much worse than in Texas. Doctors, women who have been victimized and damaged by the stupid laws, Jessica Alba, Kelly Rowland, Beyoncé, and Kamala all gave eloquent speeches about the insanity of these laws and the need to elect Kamala. 

Here is Kelly and Beyoncé's speeches.

And here is Kamala's speech in Houston. It gives me a special thrill to see Houston come out in big numbers for Kamala and to feel the energy and excitement in the crowd. I know there are many, many great people living in Houston, and this might be the year we finally overcome the Republicans and turn Texas blue. It's coming.