Dear John,
As I slept, at 2:30 am on Monday morning, I lost power and heat at my home in Dallas while a winter storm and brutally cold temperatures overtook the state.
More than four days later, it’s still out.
I am one of those who were fortunate enough to find friends and family members to stay with. My pup was crying all day Monday, and after 30 hours without power or heat, I was thankful to find a safe and warm refuge for us that evening.
But all week long, millions of Texans found themselves stuck in life-threatening freezing cold temperatures, without electricity or a warm place to sleep, and having trouble finding food to eat or even safe and clean water to drink.
Let’s be clear, John — what's happening in Texas right now is a result of intentional policy choices and failed leadership in response to the escalating climate crisis — and it is yet another form of structural violence being inflicted on our communities.
The last five days have given me and millions of others in Texas a front-row seat to the damage being done to our people. In most moments, it’s more of a slow death that is invisible and harder to describe — like landfills being zoned and authorized in poor Black communities.
But this week, we’ve seen it explode into full view while the whole world is watching.
Texas has been operating its own power grid for years to avoid federal regulation and taxes. For decades, Republicans in power have shown they care only about the corporate profits of fossil fuel companies, and not the lives and dignity of the people living here.
They've never cared for us. And they haven’t pretended to care about us. Need proof? Just look at Ted “Cancun” Cruz and his vacation plans yesterday in the midst of a climate disaster.
While our government officials in Texas have been either missing in action or jetting off to Cancun, our communities have been doing the jobs they were supposed to do. We’ve been showing up for each other, just as we have done in crisis after crisis.
And while that immediate work must continue, it’s just as important that we prepare for the much longer, sustained fight.
If you want to help, here are two ways you can show solidarity with Texans right now and help us bring transformational change to this state — and the country — going forward:
For the last five days of this nightmare, brave Texans have given of themselves, physically, mentally, and emotionally — all to do the job that our government should be doing. These kinds of unprecedented events will only become more frequent and Black, indigenous, disabled, and LGBTQ communities will be among those who are hit the hardest every time.
As we spend the coming days and months assessing the needs of our people, we also need to lean into this moment. Thank you for your solidarity, and your support. The people of Texas will rise again.
In solidarity,
Mercedes Fulbright
Organizing Director
Texas Working Families Party
Become a Working Families Party Member! Other political groups have corporate donors. We have you. Just $10 a month supports our fight.
Paid for by Working Families Party National PAC (81 Prospect St., Brooklyn, NY).
