We're not sure what's more unusual about our current mayoral election, the diverse candidates (we keep waiting for the "a black guy, a lesbian and a rich white guy walk into a bar..." jokes) or the fact that a race so tight has been so tame thus far. The New York Timesoffered its second analysis on the race, once again with an ever-so-slight measure of surprise that we Houstonians haven't run Annise Parker out of town for her sexuality and don't seem to mind that Gene Locke was a militant black student leader several decades ago. With the race so tight (Peter Brown holds a lead over Parker with Locke in third and the largest percentage of voters still undecided, according to the most recent polling), it's unlikely any candidate will receive a majority of votes, in which case the top two vote-getters will compete in a run-off in December. Election day is Tuesday, November 3, and this site has a great list of voting stations by zip code.
Thanks, Queen Bey
Pop icon Beyoncé donates $100,000 to University of Houston Law School
Pop megastar Beyoncé Knowles-Carter has donated $100,000 to the University of Houston Law Center Criminal Justice Clinic through her BeyGOOD Foundation. The gift will allow the clinic to hire fill-time faculty to head it, benefiting the students who study there.
“I am delighted that the BeyGOOD Foundation has made this very generous gift to the UH Law Center,” said Leonard Baynes, dean of the UH Law Center. “Not only will this funding help establish a full-time criminal justice clinic that provides pro bono legal services in our community, but it will also supercharge our already excellent criminal law and justice programming.”
The clinic is one of nine at UHLC. It helps students learn to navigate the criminal justice system, especially on behalf of clients that are underserved by skilled attorneys. People of color are affected disproportionately by a lack of good, ethical representation.
Beyoncé, the most decorated artist in Grammy history and easily the biggest musical star native to Houston, has a long history of advocating for criminal justice reform. She was a staunch supporter of the police reform following the deaths of Alton Sterling and Philando Castile, asking law enforcement to “stop killing us” in a web post. In 2020, she penned an open letter to the Kentucky attorney general asking for justice in the death of Breonna Taylor.
Through her BeyGOOD Foundation, established in 2013, Beyoncé has focused mostly on expanding the prospects of Black-owned business and offering education opportunities to students. Forwarding the cause of legal representation in Texas while also helping out marginalized communities compliments her other philanthropic work.
“At UH Law, we envision a legal profession where ‘everyone has the opportunity to prosper,’ as BeyGOOD envisions, and we will achieve this vision by providing access to strong and effective legal representation in criminal proceedings,” Baynes said. “And together, through this gift, the BeyGOOD Foundation and UHLC will shepherd the next generation of criminal justice attorneys in the city of Houston, the state of Texas and the nation.”