By: Erin Dyer Houston homeowners Aisling and Wes Jones’ beloved pet was suddenly shot dead at their home last month. Boss was an eight-year-old, 54-pound Boxer dog that the couple had had in their family since Boss was just six weeks old. Like many others who raise and love their pets, Boss was like “their very own child” and is deeply missed. Free Press Houston spoke with Aisling about the details of the events that lead up to Boss’s untimely demise – one that she and her family consider to be a horrific tragedy. According to Aisling, on the day ... Read More »

Houston is well-known for experimental music/noise and risk-taking performance art, but the literary landscape is rather safe, tepid, and bland. Poet / translator / interpreter / educator / collaborator / organizer / interdisciplinary artist John Pluecker is trying to change that. Read More »

By Amanda Hart Photo courtesy of Tony Diaz Tony Diaz is a Houston poet, novelist, activist, leader, professor, visionary and all around badass. He has been an active Houston community member for many years now. Diaz recently set out on a new adventure, Librotraficante, in which he travels the country organizing and creating banned book libraries. In Arizona, where ashes of institutional racism are still smoldering, Tony and his fellow book smugglers took a creative and visionary approach to breaking down those walls and replacing them with hope – hope for a better tomorrow for us and, more importantly, our ... Read More »

By Amanda Hart Illustration by Blake Jones Texas Lt. Governor David Dewhurst recently appointed some rather craptastic people to some rather powerful positions. Our very own Houston Senator, Dan Patrick, was appointed to chair of the Senate Education Committee. Patrick has been an outspoken supporter for implementing school vouchers (or school choice) into our public school system. Shortly after Patrick’s appointment he touted at a press conference, “Our base has wanted us to pass photo voter ID (law) for years, and we did it. They’ve wanted us to pass school choice (vouchers) for years. This is the year to do ... Read More »

On Monday November 5th, Houston scenester Rad Rich called the Harris County Clerk to ask for a paper ballot.  He was told that after a fire, they have decided to get rid of the paper ballots. Nick Cooper: Are you still going to try to vote? Rad Rich: There’s already been irregularities reported in Houston with electronic voting. If they don’t let you vote on paper, there’s no use voting.  If I went, I would just start a hassle at the election booth, but the people aren’t trained to answer the questions.  Where I vote, there’s a lot of elderly ... Read More »

As journalists, we should be extra vigilant not to pander to powerful people, or let friendships get in the way of asking tough questions on behalf of disenfranchised populations. Read More »

If you frequent 90.1 on the dial here in Houston, you maybe familiar with a program called Democracy Now!, hosted by a fiery, progressive journalist named Amy Goodman. For the past 15 years, Democracy Now! has provided an alternative to mainstream media for people who want to receive news about issues traditional media either skims or ignores entirely. Giving in-depth interviews with people directly involved with the controversies and topics, the listener-sponsored program has opened up first-hand information to the public unseen and unheard in corporate-sponsored networks. Currently, Democracy Now! is on their “Silenced Majority Tour” stopping at 100 different cities to report local movements, the ... Read More »

Illustration by Blake Jones A look at how proposed voter ID legislation is attempting to silence the minority vote By Amanda Hart This past month a Federal District Court, along with a little help from the Voting Rights Act of 1965, thankfully struck down the recently passed Texas voter ID law, SB 14. The law would have required voters to show a government-issued identification to be able to cast a ballot this election cycle. A letter from the Justice Department to the state of Texas clearly outlines why Texas can’t have nice things, “We conclude that the total number of ... Read More »

Teach-In, Saturday, October 27th, 4-7pm @ East Side Social Center (4202 Canal St) Local activist Alejandro de la Torre locked himself to an underground capsule to stop the bulldozers and protect a family farm.  Fellow Texans, Shannon Beebe and Benjamin Franklin were submitted to choke-holds, violent arm-twisting, pepper spray, and multiple uses of Tasers, all while in handcuffs.  Even if you’re not the type to put your body on the line, how about going to hear their stories, and learn why they are doing such uncomfortable things?  This Saturday, they will be holding a teach-in at East Side Social Center, ... Read More »

Illustration by Blake Jones By: Amanda Hart It has been a rough few years to own a vagina. In 2025 alone, there were 711 anti-choice measures enacted across the country.  Texas, as we all know, didn’t exactly wave its “We <3 Vagina” flag. We lost the Texas Women’s Health Program effectively leaving low-income women without access to birth control and life-saving cancer screenings all because the federal government would not allow our legislators to exclude Planned Parenthood from the service providers list. Just this year, 430,000 women will be left without birth control, cervical exams, breast exams, STD testing, and ... Read More »