Texas Standard for February 23, 2022

A political revolution in South Texas where Latinas are leading a rightward push; Jack Herrera of Texas Monthly with more on who’s behind changes in a longtime democratic stronghold. And: Jeremy Suri of UT on escalating tensions in Ukraine. Also: Should Wordle get a Texan accent? Those stories and more today on the Texas Standard:

By Texas StandardFebruary 23, 2022 9:12 am,

How Latinas are moving the RGV to the right

The Rio Grande Valley is increasingly seen as a high profile political battleground – but it’s one that’s been years in the making. And though some might be quick to give Donald Trump credit for exciting conservative RGV voters, others point to work done over the years by Latinas – some of whom are now running for office. Jack Herrera has the story for Texas Monthly and joins us today.

Houston’s Carverdale landfill is one step closer to expanding despite local protests

A landfill in a historically Black and Hispanic neighborhood in northwest Houston has sat there since the 1990s. Now its owner is trying to ramp up and extend its operations for another 46 years. Houston Public Media’s Sara Willa Ernst met with Carverdale residents who have never been happy with the landfill in their neighborhood.

These are Wordles from Texas 

You’ve no doubt seen or heard about the online game Wordle. The daily puzzle game with the yellow and green boxes has become part of the morning routine for millions. Texas Standard commentator W.F Strong has a few suggestions for making the game even more popular with Texans.

The latest on Russia’s moves against Ukraine

The Ukrainian government is urging citizens to leave Russia as soon as possible, due to an anticipated military confrontation with Russia. To help catch us up on all the latest we’re joined by professor Jeremi Suri with UT-Austin’s LBJ School of Public Affairs.

These first-graders may be acting out, but they’re also acting like 6-year-olds

Since the pandemic started two years ago, we’ve been worried about issues affecting children: remote learning, limited social interactions and more. This school year, with more children getting the vaccine and schools back in session, the situation is improving. As KUT’s Claire McInerny reports, there’s something interesting going on with first-graders – and don’t worry, it’s not all bad.

Fact-check: Have 100,000 Americans died from drug overdoses over the past year?

U.S. Sen. John Cornyn said in a tweet that 100,000 Americans died from overdoses in a single year. Is that a fact? Nusaiba Mizan looks into this claim for PolitiFact Texas, based at the Austin American-Statesman.

All this, plus the Texas Newsroom’s state roundup and Wells Dunbar with the Talk of Texas.

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