The following statement is from Terrance “TK” Koontz of BlackTOP, in response to WNBA star and activist Brittney Griner being freed from a Russian penal colony and returned home to the U.S.

“The scale of our work as organizers is freedom. Just like Harriet, Fannie Lou, and Dr. King before us, Brittany coming home is plotted on that freedom scale. After being unjustly locked up and dehumanized for months, a daughter of our state is on her way back to her home. It’s not lost on us how the intersection of her identities as a Black, queer woman makes it impossible for some to see the value for her life.

“BlackTOP stands in solidarity with Black people all across the country who called attention to this and organized around the disgusting treatment of Brittney at the hands of Russian authorities, and we commend the Biden administration for following through on securing her release.”

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BlackTOP was built on the premise that the future of Texas rests in organizing Black folks across the state and getting US to the polls. With offices in Houston, Dallas and San Antonio, BlackTOP launched canvassing programs across multiple Texas counties to talk to, organize, and mobilize Black voters ahead of the 2022 election. For more information, visit blacktoptexas.org.

This statement was sent out December 8, 2022.

The following statement is from Brianna Brown, Texas Organizing Project (TOP) Co-Executive Director, in response to former President Donald Trump formally announcing his run for the presidency in 2024:

“The sheer fact that Donald J. Trump, an egotistical con man who attempted to overturn an election and incited a horde of white supremacists to storm the U.S. Capitol, has the gall to announce a run for a second presidential term speaks volumes about the fragile state of our democracy, as well as how the wealthy and powerful in our country can unjustly evade accountability for their heinous wrongdoings.

“Trump is an abomination who deserves retribution, not another shot at the presidency. He is not only the embodiment of corruption, he is the poster child of white nationalism in our country today, and is being propped up by far-right election deniers, like Texas’ own criminally-indicted attorney general Ken Paxton. 

“TOP will also continue to shine a light on the 18 current Texas-serving elected officials – including Paxton – who fully deny the legitimacy of the 2020 election results. 

“Just as we did during the 2020 election cycle, our Black and Latino communities are more than ready to show up to the polls again in historic numbers to stop Trump and all that he represents in 2024, should Republicans dare nominate him.”

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Texas Organizing Project organizes Black and Latino communities in Dallas, Harris, Bexar, and Fort Bend counties with the goal of transforming Texas into a state where working people of color have the power and representation they deserve. For more information, visit organizetexas.org.

This statement was sent out November 16, 2022.

Texas Organizing Project (TOP) PAC is proud to have played a major role in supporting Lina Hidalgo’s successful re-election campaign for Harris County Judge. This election cycle, TOP PAC’s door-knocking canvassing program engaged with 349,966 voters to help re-elect Judge Hidalgo, the majority of which were infrequent Black and Latino voters. 

TOP PAC also released a digital ad buy highlighting Hidalgo’s successful record as county judge.

The following statement is from Michelle Tremillo, TOP Co-Executive Director: 

“For the past 12 years, TOP has co-led the movement to expand the electorate in Harris County by engaging with Black and Latino voters and connecting voting to everyday issues that impact their lives. Simply put, TOP has worked year-round for over a decade to engage and mobilize voters of color to shift Texas’ political landscape.

“TOP PAC was proud to endorse Lina Hidalgo again, so that she could continue building on the progressive success of her first historic term as Harris County Judge. Over the course of her career, she has consistently prioritized and fought for the wellbeing of all Harris County families by focusing on equity in Black and Latino communities. She kept residents safe during the pandemic and throughout natural disasters including freezes and floods. TOP looks forward to Judge Hidalgo continuing to lift up working families in Harris County by expanding access to affordable healthcare, defending our personal freedoms, and enacting effective, humane legal reforms that protect our rights and keep our communities safe.  

TOP board member Ray Brackens of Harris County added:

“Today, we’re reaping the rewards of the tireless work of TOP staff, members, supporters, and most importantly the Harris County community. But TOP’s work is far from finished. Tomorrow, we keep pressing forward. We won’t rest until our state’s policies and elected officials truly embody a Texas that works for all.”

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Texas Organizing Project PAC runs the largest, independent Get-out-the-Vote political field programs in Texas, focusing on expanding the electorate of color, with an emphasis on turning out Black and Latino voters. To date, TOP PAC has mobilized hundreds of thousands of voters across the state with the aim of building a reflective democracy–one that looks like us and shares our values. Learn more at toppac.org.

This statement was sent out November 10, 2022.

The following statement is from Michelle Tremillo, Co-Executive Director of the Texas Organizing Project (TOP) PAC, in response to Republican Harris County Commissioners Tom Ramsey (Pct. 3) and Jack Cagle (Pct. 4) once again failing to appear at commissioners court Tuesday, preventing a tax rate from being passed and causing millions to be cut from Harris County’s budget.

“Republican Harris County Commissioners Ramsey and Cagle’s failure to show up and pass a tax rate is a slap in the face to the more than 4.8 million people who call Harris County home.

“By putting partisan politics ahead of public service, Ramsey and Cagle have now stripped away millions of dollars dedicated to public safety, public health, and infrastructure in Harris County’s budget.

“The fact they are now patting themselves on the back for slashing funding for law enforcement, flood control, and the county’s health system shows us how their stunt was always about political posturing, not about putting working families first.

“If Commissioners Ramsey and Cagle won’t do the job they were elected to do, then Harris County voters will elect actual leaders to replace them who will.”

Ray Brackens, TOP Board Member and Harris County resident:

“As a Harris County resident and taxpayer, the selfish actions of Commissioners Ramsey and Cagle have me livid. 

“Out of pure spite, these despicable men chose to endanger the wellbeing of everyday working Harris County residents who rely on county services, as well as the thousands of people employed by the county to administer those services.

“That is how much contempt Ramsey and Cagle have for their own constituents.”

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Texas Organizing Project PAC runs the largest, independent Get-out-the-Vote political field programs in Texas, focusing on expanding the electorate of color, with an emphasis on turning out Black and Latino voters. To date, TOP PAC has mobilized hundreds of thousands of voters across the state with the aim of building a reflective democracy–one that looks like us and shares our values.

This statement was sent out October 26, 2022.

The two Republican Harris County Commissioners, Jack Cagle and Tom Ramsey, have refused to attend county meetings for over a month. Under current Texas law, county governments require a super quorum of four members present in order to vote on tax or budget issues, effectively giving any two members a veto if they choose not to show up. 

This political stunt has severe consequences for Harris County residents that affect everything from accessing healthcare in a timely manner, protecting their homes from severe weather (such as floods), providing access to libraries, and keeping outdoor spaces clean and safe for all. 

The following is a statement from Michelle Tremillo, Texas Organizing Project (TOP) Co-Executive Director, calling on Commissioners Cagle and Ramsey to do their jobs:

“Enough is enough, Commissioners Cagle and Ramsey. Stop the political games with Harris County residents’ lives, and show up to commissioner’s court tomorrow and do your job. Your absence and refusal to pass a tax rate is putting all county programs and services at risk of insufficient funding for people who are already struggling with higher prices. Tuesday’s meeting is Harris County’s last chance to pass a tax rate before reverting to an austere budget. We’re calling on Commissioners Cagle and Ramsey to step up and work to help improve our community, not make it suffer over partisanship.” 

Mattie Jackson, TOP Harris County Community Leader, echoed Tremillo’s calls for action: 

“Harris County residents, myself included, deserve officials who show up to work and do the job they were elected to do. It is unconscionable that our literal health – including potential delays in lifesaving screenings like colonoscopies and other screenings – is being put on the line by partisan games. Commissioners Cage and Ramsey, show up and pass a tax rate – now.”

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Texas Organizing Project organizes Black and Latino communities in Dallas, Harris, Bexar, and Fort Bend counties with the goal of transforming Texas into a state where working people of color have the power and representation they deserve. For more information, visit organizetexas.org.

This statement was sent out October 24, 2022.

The following is a statement from Michelle Tremillo, Co-Executive Director of the Texas Organizing Project (TOP), on a study released this week showing the alarming impact that Texas voter restriction laws are having on people trying to vote by mail this election:

“Texas Republicans’ new laws restricting voting by mail in our state are nothing more than the brazen disenfranchisement of communities of color, with voters of color being 50 percent more likely than white voters to have their ballots rejected.

“A new study from the Brennan Center states that while the ballot/application rejection rate for Black voters was at 17 percent, and Latino voters at 16 percent, the rejection rate for white voters was less than 12 percent. For ballots only, Latino voters were rejected at nearly 15 percent, and Black voters at almost 14 percent; in contrast, the ballot rejection rate for white voters was a mere 9 percent.

“These disparities aren’t coincidental; this is clear-cut voter suppression. The far-right knows they can only win elections when they suppress our vote, and TOP is as committed as ever to mobilizing Black and Latino voters to make our voices heard at the ballot box each and every election cycle. ” 

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Texas Organizing Project organizes Black and Latino communities in Dallas, Harris, Bexar, and Fort Bend counties with the goal of transforming Texas into a state where working people of color have the power and representation they deserve. For more information, visit organizetexas.org.

This statement was sent out October 21, 2022.

The following statement is from Jessica Azua, Immigration Justice Director of the Texas Organizing Project (TOP), in response to the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals today issuing a ruling on the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, sending the case back to a lower court.

“Since DACA’s inception a decade ago, far-right politicians have launched attack after attack against not just the program, but the basic humanity of recipients themselves.

“Texas has the second-largest population of people in the DACA program in the U.S., but all Texas Gov. Greg Abbott and Attorney General Ken Paxton are focused on is villainizing migrant families any chance they get instead of working on policy solutions to uplift immigrant communities. Abbott and Paxton are leading this charge because in the eyes of today’s GOP, the cruelty is the point. Texas Organizing Project will never back down and allow extremists to strip Dreamers of their humanity and right to thrive in this country we call home.

“The fact that Republicans are applauding this partisan court ruling that keeps the well-being of hundreds of thousands of people in jeopardy tells you all you need to know about their malicious intent with their lawsuit.

“This court ruling only makes clearer the urgent need for members of Congress to act to pass a permanent legislative solution that will allow their constituents to fully contribute to our country and live free without the threat of deportation.”

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Texas Organizing Project organizes Black and Latino communities in Dallas, Harris, Bexar, and Fort Bend counties with the goal of transforming Texas into a state where working people of color have the power and representation they deserve. For more information, visit organizetexas.org.

This statement was sent out October 5, 2022.

The following is a statement from Brianna Brown, Co-Executive Director of the Texas Organizing Project (TOP), on the organization’s observance of Indigenous Peoples’ Day this year:

“With immeasurable resilience in the face of centuries of violence and broken promises, Tribal Nations have fought to preserve their sovereign rights while also making countless contributions to shape and strengthen the United States.

“As we recognize and celebrate Indigenous Peoples’ Day, we must acknowledge years of atrocities at the hands of white supremacy, while committing to one another to build a new future of promise where liberation for all Indigenous communities is fully realized.

“TOP organizes and builds solidarity across communities of color to dismantle the systemic racism that for far too has held back Black, Latino, and Indigenous Americans. The disparities that still exist for Indigenous people in areas such healthcare access, public education, affordable housing, and economic opportunity are a direct result of the destructive legacy of colonization.

“Our work as organizers is to tear down this genocidal legacy, build people-driven power from the ground up, and enact bold transformative societal change that allows all people to thrive. THIS is racial and economic justice in action, and it guides our work, day in and day out.”

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Texas Organizing Project organizes Black and Latino communities in Dallas, Harris, Bexar, and Fort Bend counties with the goal of transforming Texas into a state where working people of color have the power and representation they deserve. For more information, visit organizetexas.org.

This statement was sent out October 10, 2022.

The following statement is from David Villalobos, Statewide Right2Justice Coordinator of the Texas Organizing Project, in response to President Joe Biden announcing steps his administration will take to pardon all prior federal offenses of simple marijuana possession and urge governors to pardon simple state possession offenses.

“The positive change that President Biden’s actions will have on the lives of thousands of Americans cannot be overstated.

“His announcement marks a significant step in the right direction toward the marijuana reform that a clear majority in our country support. Already, twenty states and Washington D.C. have legalized marijuana for nonmedical use.

“It also signals a further shift away from failed and discriminatory War on Drugs policies that for decades have targeted Black and Latino communities – tearing apart families, devastating neigborhoods, and contributing to our nation’s astronomical incarceration rate.”

Mattie Jackson, a TOP Right2Justice campaign member in Houston added:

“Black Americans are nearly four times more likely to be arrested for marijuana charges than their white peers, yet both consume marijuana at roughly the same rates, underscoring how reforming our nation’s laws on marijuana IS about racial and economic justice.

“These bold steps from President Biden are absolutely welcome and must be expanded on. Countless promising lives have been shattered by our unjust marijuana policies rooted in racism.

“Will Greg Abbott now act on President Biden’s call for governors to pardon simple state marijuana possession offenses? Knowing our radical, out-of-touch governor, we’re not holding our breath. Of course he won’t.”

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Texas Organizing Project organizes Black and Latino communities in Dallas, Harris, Bexar, and Fort Bend counties with the goal of transforming Texas into a state where working people of color have the power and representation they deserve. For more information, visit organizetexas.org.

Today, Texas Organizing Project (TOP) PAC and Florida Rising are jointly condemning the disgusting action taken by Florida Governor Ron DeSantis’ to cruelly fly migrants to Martha’s Vineyard. DeSantis’ follows Texas Governor Greg Abbott’s lead of busing migrants to Washington D.C. earlier this year. By lying and deceiving vulnerable individuals and asylum-seekers who have the right to be in this country, both men have confirmed how shameless their radical, dehumanizing politics are when it comes to caring about the wellbeing of people in need of humanitarian aid. Not only are their actions inhumane, they are also potentially illegal, and the Bexar County Sheriff has opened a criminal investigation into the move to trick migrants into flying to Massachusetts.

TOP and Florida Rising are committed to removing these shameless Republicans from office in November, and we are engaging hundreds of thousands of voters in Florida and in Texas to reach that goal. These inhumane acts also echo back to “Reverse Freedom Rides,” during the 1960s when Southern segregationists sent Black Americans to northern states in an attempt engineered to expose liberals’ alleged hypocrisy. The Reverse Freedom Rides have largely been left out of our country’s historical narrative. Many of these individuals currently affected by these horrifying PR stunts, like the Black families 60 years ago, have traveled on the false pretenses of receiving jobs and housing. 

TOP Co-Executive Director Michelle Tremillo, released the following statement: “Abbott’s plot to deceitfully transport migrants reveals what TOP members have known for some time—our GOP governor couldn’t care less about the rights, health, and wellbeing of migrants and their families. Instead of working toward real policy solutions on behalf of Texans and migrants, Republicans would rather exploit and play politics with real human lives. Now, more than ever, the need for change and leadership in Texas, as in Florida, is clear, and we at TOP are fighting to engage Black and Latino communities who will help us build a better state.

Florida Rising’s Executive Director Andrea Mercado echoed the outrage: “Governors DeSantis and Abbott are on full display of their endless hypocrisy but, mostly, cruelty. In an electoral cycle, they take advantage of the pain of those who fled authoritarian regimes, adding insult to injury as an evil electoral tactic. These Republican leaders are using asylum seekers to play an outrageous political game. Their lack of compassion is abysmal, but even worse, their disrespect, time and again, for the Hispanic community once again affirms that racism and xenophobia are the GOP’s marching orders. But our communities’ marching orders are clear– voting out DeSantis and Abbott on November 8th.” 

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Texas Organizing Project (TOP) PAC runs the largest, independent get-out-the-vote political field programs in Texas, focusing on expanding the electorate of color, with an emphasis on turning out Black and Latino voters. To date, TOP PAC has mobilized hundreds of thousands of voters across the state with the aim of building a reflective democracy–one that looks like us and shares our values. For more information, visit toppac.org.

Florida Rising (FR) is an independent political organization working to increase the voting and political power of historically marginalized and excluded constituencies toward an inclusive, equitable, and just Florida. For more information, visit floridarising.org. 

This joint statement was sent out September 21, 2022.