Dimensionally Barrett

Source:  https://bayoubluedems.com/ It’s been a minute since the last Democracy Cafe in March , but I really genuinely enjoy these meetings. The idea is simple; cover a topic and its relevance to Houston. Last Saturday’s was “Immigration” and provided a couple of hours of reflection and spirited discussion.  People start arriving at ten and meet and mingle and then break up into groups of four for two sessions. Each session is about half an hour long that goes by far too quickly. A facilitator is chosen who remains in place, then the other three people find other places to light. This keeps perspectives fresh and all of us motivated to learn. I was a facilitator and couldn’t ask for more vibrant cohorts. The first break-out session was centered the question “How do immigrants (legal, illegal) impact Houston specifically? Recognizing that Houston is 24% immigrant population means that the impact is immense. Consider that one in four people are non-native across a broad section ...

How’s everyone doing today? How was your weekend? Mine was a learning period. On Saturday, a number of people met for a Democracy Cafe sponsored by Bayou Blue Democrats . Most skewed older, but it was a good mix of people across demographics of the city. A number of discussions came up about the fraught nature of the times we’re living in but two things were readily apparent. One is that this is a group of people who are taking the right steps in calling their reps (and emailing) and if they themselves are not organizers, they get out and protest and stand with others.  Another thing I noticed is that just about everyone feels distant from leadership in Washington. Part of this is being in a state run by right wing conservatives who are, if not in lock-step with the White House, not too far from it. Mostly, though, what came out was the lack of confidence in Schumer or Jeffries as the leaders of the Dems in the House and Senate. To be suer, the house of Representatives has tended t...