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Ep. 34 (Audio): She's Suing Greg Abbott (Angel Carroll)
38 Plays13 days ago
You may have seen Angel on the news talking Texas politics. But what you may not know is that Angel Carroll spent her career fighting for criminal justice reform, ran for the Texas House, and was arrested at the Texas Capitol during the redistricting protest. Now she's suing Governor Greg Abbott for banning her from the building without due process. Kate and Alex sit down with Angel to hear the full story: what led her to that moment, what happened inside county jail, and why this lawsuit is about so much more than four women and a one-year ban.
Plus: Kate spoke at a veterans event, Alex celebrates 14 years of marriage, and Angel shares a milestone birthday and a prayer she made at 16 that she never thought she'd live to see answered.
We cover:
- Angel's path from the foster care system to the Texas Capitol
- What actually happened the night Nicole Collier was locked on the House floor
- The moment Angel decided she wasn't leaving and what that felt like
- 30 state troopers for four women: the arrest and six hours in Travis County jail
- Charges rejected, but the ban upheld — the constitutional case for why that's wrong
- The Alabama pilgrimage: Africatown, the Selma bridge, and the lynching museum
- Marching orders: what every Texan can do right now to fight back
Follow Angel:
@iangelcarroll on social media
Support the show:
Love what we're doing? Become a member at patreon.com/missiontexaspodcast — just a few dollars a month keeps independent Texas media alive. And if you can't spare the cash, a five-star review goes just as far. God bless Texas. 🤠
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Transcript
Introduction to Angel Carroll's Arrest
00:00:00
Speaker
Howdy. This is Mission Texas. Welcome back to Mission Texas. Our next guest is Angel Carroll, my friend, who, unfortunately, we're going to talk about this, was arrested at the Texas Capitol during the redistricting protest.
00:00:14
Speaker
You may remember that. And after spending her career fighting for criminal justice reform and running for the Texas House, she's now suing our governor, Greg Abbott, for banning her from that building Can't believe that that's happening, Angel. want to get into that and more. Welcome to the podcast.
00:00:31
Speaker
Thank you. Thank you. Yes. 2026. You could be banned from the state capital. Imagine that. I think it's important, as I mentioned, to kind of contextualize it because I can imagine the thoughts and feelings that you're having in that moment while you're being arrested is informed by the body of your career and
Angel's Advocacy and Legal History
00:00:49
Speaker
life. So can we get into that? Like what got you to that place? And tell us a little bit bit about your race.
00:00:55
Speaker
I started showing up to the state capitol during legislative sessions to advocate for dual status youth. So those are youth that were in the foster care system and then have a legal system involved. I was first arrested in Texas at age 10, was put in youth prison because there were no foster homes for me, despite not even being convicted of a crime. i mean, our system, are it's broken.
00:01:16
Speaker
And so that is what I have have dedicated my life to. So I'm very familiar with that building, this work and the detainment, right, of black and brown bodies in the state on multiple levels. So, you know, hearing while we're fighting for our voting rights.
00:01:31
Speaker
And then they have now locked a sitting state representative in the chamber because she refuses to be surveilled by DPS agents.
Impact of Capitol Ban on Angel's Work
00:01:41
Speaker
We just called everybody it said, hey, we've got to show up to this building and let people know that we have eyes on her and that we are not backing down.
00:01:49
Speaker
And what Republicans are doing is not OK. um And like you said, I got arrested. you know that was the house that my ancestors built, were forced to build, right? And spent six hours in in county jail. And I'll add that it was a waste of resources because they printed our ticket out in the lawn. And then we sat in the trooper car for about an hour and a half before they finally decided to take us.
00:02:14
Speaker
um And our charges were later rejected, meaning that we were found not to have committed. any crime, trespassing. Yet the state preservation board continues to uphold a ban of the Capitol complex, which it's more than just, I think, you know, people hear, oh, you're not allowed to go to the Capitol building, right? But it's the Capitol complex. So my ticket actually says somewhere on my bookshelf that I'm not allowed on the grass, the driveway. And there's actually three other women that were arrested. I do want to name, you know, Jessica Cohen, Megan Toohey, and Jill Van Boris, who were arrested with me.
00:02:46
Speaker
my fellow jailbirds, we're not allowed on the grass, the parking lot, the driveway. i mean, I can't go to the Bob Bullock Museum, the Supreme Court building where actually do work because I'm on the Judicial Commission on Mental Health.
00:02:59
Speaker
So that also has impacted my ability to work. But a lot of folks in Austin, that is where their state representative's office are because they don't have, they're so close to the state capitol, there's no reason for them to have an additional office out in the community. So now we can't even go talk to our state reps.
00:03:16
Speaker
or even show up during the special legislative session. So it's important for us to fight back. There's no avenue even for appeal,
Protest Background and Arrest Details
00:03:24
Speaker
right? So what happened to due process in this state?
00:03:27
Speaker
um That lawsuit really is fighting for our first, and the infringement of our first and 14th amendment rights. Well, the problem, the the mistake you made, unfortunately, was daring to use your first and 14th Amendment rights as a Democrat.
00:03:42
Speaker
Right? Because if you were a Republican and you stormed the U.S. Capitol, you'd be getting some compensation, apparently. $1.6 billion. dollars i think it's billion dollars because they wanted to be cute and do a seventeen seventy six thing Man, and fun fact, i actually taught in the D.C. jail, the FBOP, and worked with the J6ers. So, like, should have taken some notes, right, and been like, how could I have gotten around this? But no, it's, it really is insane. And, you know, i'm really fortunate and thankful for Senator Molly Cupp, who made sure that her staff were there as legal observers throughout the process.
00:04:19
Speaker
We were released at 6 a.m., and her staff ah made sure that I got home and got my car and then Senator Eckhart who bailed us out. There's just a group of phenomenal Dems that continue to fight with us in Austin. We should say Democratic nominee for comptroller, Senator Eckhart. I would say the most flippable seat on the state.
00:04:38
Speaker
The ballot. And future guest. So we're excited to have her. i want to ask her about that. But Angel, I mean, can you tell us or remind us, because it feels like we're driving drinking from a fire hose sometimes with what's going on then in the news.
00:04:50
Speaker
And just a week will go by and I'll forget something that happened. And last week, I forgot that Matt Gaetz was a nominee for AG at one point. So, yeah, roll our eyes. Can you remind us what led to Nicole Collier, right, to be at the Capitol and how DPS was surveilling our state reps?
00:05:13
Speaker
Yeah. So, you know, we had a legislative session and for those that may not know, the governor has the ability to call a special session and he gets to choose the agenda. and that's outside the fact that we only have a legislative session every two years. However, we have one of the largest GDPs. We could be our own country, right, in this global economy and market.
00:05:31
Speaker
And so during that special session, he called for the legislature to redistricting. And as we're seeing, they are redistricting and gerrymandering maps to give an unfair advantage, not just to Republicans, but to remove representation primarily, right, and particularly for low-income and Black and brown districts and to take away that political power. And so our Democrats utilized a strategy that they've done before, which is breaking quorum, and they fled to Chicago, Illinois.
00:06:01
Speaker
And, you know, they had warrants out for their arrest, got fines. It was very much in the news of what what was going to happen to them, right? They did that at great risk. And so there came a point where...
00:06:13
Speaker
They came back. And so as they came back, there were a few people that came to the state capitol. Some decided not to. i think seven folks actually stayed behind in Chicago. They paid their way just because they knew that their districts were going to be affected the most by this. And those that came back had to sign a slip to leave the House floor and the building that said that they would be followed by DPS agents to ensure that they came back the next day and however many days it was going to take before that vote to pass. the maps happen. And so i think it was like maybe two or three days that it took.
00:06:48
Speaker
And so every, every Democrat that came back signed, except representative Nicole Poyer, and they would not let her leave the floor. I mean, I was at one point, I was able to send snacks. I think I sent a doctor, a diet Coke and Oreos, because those were her favorite snacks and a note just saying like, we stand with you.
00:07:04
Speaker
But as the day progressed, they would not let notes be sent on the floor, which you're typically allowed to do Myself, a reporter from the New York Times and the San Antonio Express, we were in the gallery and we were kicked out actually around noon, which is also unusual to happen as well.
00:07:23
Speaker
So there was there's a lot of shifty and shady business going on Well, can you tell us then about like, just step us through that protest, like put us in the Capitol then like what happened next? Like, how are you arrested?
00:07:36
Speaker
arrested But if knew we were removed from the floor. You know, we decided we're just going to stay outside and just kind of monitor things. Right. And in our head, I think there was a ah moment where we were like, surely they're not going to make her spend the night.
00:07:49
Speaker
Right. There's going to be some sort of resolve. So we didn't really start sounding the alarm just yet till it got later in the evening, five, six. And we we're like, oh, like they're really going to make her sleep on the floor.
00:07:59
Speaker
And so, you know, it was it was a mixed effort between Megan Toohey, Pooja Sethi, who's state representative elect. She's filling into her old boss, Vicki Goodwin's seat. She was currently the chair of the Travis County Democratic Party. so they put out a back signal and we just ask people to show up.
00:08:16
Speaker
And we talk about organizing. Yes, sometimes there's a ah larger strategy and in media. And at this point, was just like, hey, grab your friends, bring snacks. We're showing up. We got to about 50 people. I mean, it was pretty large and we were chanting. A news started coming.
00:08:32
Speaker
it just grew. i don't I don't know how else to like describe it. It really was grassroots, like show up. We had the Senate was still in session. So we had ah Senator West, Gutierrez, Molly Cook, Sarah Eckhart, who would come and check on us occasionally, ask if we needed anything. And um Senator Eckhart at one point, a lot of us started talking about, OK, they're saying that they're going to close the building at 10. 10 rolled around and it was like, well, Senate's still in session so you all can stay until then. And so what happens if we decide not to leave? Right. And this is a safety plan when you're protesting. Right. If if if an arrest happens, what is the plan?
00:09:08
Speaker
Who is your emergency contact? And so those conversations didn't start happening till later into the night. And Sarah Eckhart, Senator Eckhart came out and she gave this phenomenal speech.
00:09:18
Speaker
If you all have not heard her speak, oh my goodness, like her energy, her passion is there.
Lawsuit Against Capitol Ban
00:09:23
Speaker
But let me tell you something. She could have been a Pied Piper. She could have been like, we're going to do this and jump right off a cliff and scream um like democracy, go democracy. And I think like myself, probably I would have done that too.
00:09:34
Speaker
I mean, she gave a very compelling, like, look what y'all are doing. It's great. We're going to be closing pretty soon. We're going to march down these stairs. down the lawn chanting x y and z and we're gonna come back tomorrow and do this again i was actually fully prepared to do that however by the time she ended literally i remember i grabbed my bag and something within me was like you're not going anywhere like you cannot leave there's a black woman in that building in that room but they won't even let texas senators go in and make sure she's okay
00:10:10
Speaker
Right. No, this is not okay. And so um remember I put my bag down and looked at Megan and I said, ah yeah, I can't go anywhere. And a lot of people didn't know we had been arrested because everyone had already left.
00:10:22
Speaker
I don't know if y'all heard people talk about like that moment where you get heavy and you can't move. Like that is quite literally what happened. And so Megan was like, These are my friends. like fuck it. Like, let's do it. Jill was like, well, Angel, I can't let you, you know i mean? i can't let you go alone. And um Jessica, too, is like, I'm going to stay. And Jessica is a trans woman. I was like, you of all people cannot do this. Right. I knew what that moment meant and what we were arrested.
00:10:48
Speaker
and then if we went to jail. Right. If they went more than the ticket, which they did. We know the experiences of trans women, especially in Texas, how dangerous that is. She was like, no, I can't let you. Can't let you go.
00:10:59
Speaker
And so by this point, it went from five or six state troopers to 30. There's a video on my Instagram where I can see them just all around. And we're like, you don't need this many like state troopers for this.
00:11:13
Speaker
three, four women, right? Senator Cook, you know, the photos of us arrested, she's right next to us and she's, you know, just like kind of like, hey, like, let me get the information, my staff, get the information for your family so we can make sure they're okay.
00:11:26
Speaker
I love her. She's like, if you want to make it difficult for them, sit down on the ground. And so i'm like, okay, you're right. And then also this, know, the encouragement of just like, you know, don't resist. And I mean, that was, there was just so, so many things there, right? Because again, it's 30 cops or 30 troopers. One of them, the lead trooper is very agitated and like very, for he was combative. I mean, he was just like,
00:11:49
Speaker
terrible i actually feel bad for the arresting officers because they were one they were young i remember the one that handcuffed and i ended up giving me my ticket we both grew up in georgetown texas together we know the same people like having this right but like he's literally shaking so there's a moment um i think i posted it where i'm saying i'm not resisting i'm not resisting and i said that because they were shaking and he kept dropping my hands And I wanted it to be known and said, because this is what it's like, you know, especially for black folks dealing with the police when you're getting arrested, right? Or having an engagement. I want you to know, i am not resisting. I'm not dropping my hands because I'm trying to assault you or trying to run away.
00:12:30
Speaker
he was just so doggone scared. He couldn't get it together. it so, but you know, we later found out during our press conference a couple weeks ago that they did not want to arrest us. They thought that it was a gross misstep, but yeah.
00:12:43
Speaker
We don't know, and I'm sure during discovery we'll find out who, but there was an order to arrest us and book us that night. Just want to put myself in your shoes as someone who's been an advocate in criminal justice. You've also, as I've read and researched more about you, your involvement in mental health and the advocacy there and all the work that you did as a young person. And just like having like maybe an out-of-body experience being arrested and also just hearing you humanize the officer who's arresting you that they're nervous in this moment and maybe not wanting to do it.
00:13:17
Speaker
So I'm just curious, like, then what happened next? And were you, was there anything surprising about the process of being arrested and going to a jail based on that history? I can recognize he didn't want to do it and he had a job to do. And I think that again, as you said, like I've, I've been on both sides. I've been the person that my first interaction in the detention facility was at 10 years old. And then I've worked in taught in a facility as well. So I see the both sides. It was traumatic to say the least, you know, i joke and say it was first time I was arrested for something I actually did.
00:13:49
Speaker
After when we got out, I did actually call the sheriff, Travis County sheriff and, ah the the district attorney and and said your officers in the facility were actually great. They treated us with with respect.
00:14:02
Speaker
They literally were like, this is stupid. Like everyone
Civil Rights Disparities and Systemic Issues
00:14:06
Speaker
knew that it was it was a waste of resources. There were real things that were going on. Did you get that recorded for your lawsuit? Right. I wish. No, no but um it was traumatic. I mean, and there was a moment during the six hours where, you know, we were kind of joking and just trying to like lighten the moment.
00:14:23
Speaker
But I went silent and they're like, Angel, are you good? And like I said, it was it was it was traumatic. I ah I experienced a lot of abuse in the facilities that they had placed me in. Again, like this, I'm i'm talking about.
00:14:38
Speaker
Because I had juvenile justice experience, there's not an emergency shelter. So I'm in a detention facility in Mejia, Texas, in Lubbock, Texas, for 60, 90 days. One of the facilities, you know, that was a TYC facility in San Antonio. Anybody that knows what TYC is, that's Texas Youth Commission. That is the prison system. And they were shut down because of the gross abuse that was going on, right? I was in a system where our government was trafficking us.
00:15:04
Speaker
And so, and you, you couldn't tell anybody because who, who were you going to tell the people that were doing it? And then they would always tell us, right. I never forget one day, actually at 15 years old, there was an investigation. Something had happened to a young girl and went down the elevators um to go meet with them and ah The officer, the supervising officer said, you can tell them whatever you want, but just know at the end of the day, you got to come back up these stairs.
00:15:30
Speaker
And that's real. That is that's what it took me back to. and I thought I had gotten over it and I hadn't. So it was a little, it was re-traumatizing, but um i don't i don't know what to say to that. It was a lot.
00:15:45
Speaker
I'm so sorry that you had that experience. I'm just sitting with it like is so grossly unfair. And i mean, I was kind of joking before, but really the the gross disparity and in the reaction between like the January Sixers and yourself is just hypocrisy is just so palpable.
00:16:04
Speaker
Yeah, no, it isn't. You know, turned it and it was opportunity one to to get my story and other people's stories out there and conversation for another day. But, you know, they had so much privilege in the D.C. jail.
00:16:17
Speaker
Right. No one ever cared about conditions and lack of resources in our prison facilities and jails until they came in and started pointing out these discrepancies. It's really sad.
00:16:29
Speaker
Yeah, it took a bunch of white supremacists to point out how horrible the conditions are for our detainees. And Marjorie Taylor Greene talking about it. i remember she was doing like the midnight shifts, you know, to keep them company or whatever. ah Yeah, you're right to point out that.
00:16:47
Speaker
Oh, you're telling me no one came to record you as a part of a choir? Nope. you're bor by any means. I mean, they were allowed to get, they almost, and it ended up getting shut down, but like they were getting really close, had it approved to turn the library in into an opportunity for them to do discovery. So like they were like, we've,
00:17:08
Speaker
They have a right, right, to to be their own represent legal representation where they were getting ready to let them on Facebook. So they could through Facebook posts and find discovery on themselves. And then that would mean that everyone else in that facility would not have access to the library. And that's where the school was, where I was at. Just resources. It was it was crazy.
00:17:27
Speaker
Sounds about white. Yeah. um You said it. God almighty. Yeah. Well, can you then tell us about this lawsuit? I mean, I can understand, as you're saying, due process, right? I can't imagine you're arrested. The charges are dropped. And yet still you're banned without due process, without any recourse from a building that I believe you as a citizen of the Texas of texas ah have a right to be at.
00:17:53
Speaker
So tell us what brought you to this lawsuit and where it's at right now. Like I said, we're we're banned for a year. We'll be able to go back to the state capitol in August, but that's not the point, right?
00:18:04
Speaker
As you mentioned, that is the people's house. We are banned and there's no avenue for appeal. And so Brian McGovern with the Austin Community Law Center reached out said, hey, I want to represent you all if y'all are open to it. I think it's a gross overreach.
00:18:20
Speaker
And we were like, yeah, let's let's do it. It was really as simple as that. We know we submitted all of our documentation and our we know how that night went for us and how it's affected us. And Three weeks ago, we were in Austin at the federal courthouse steps where we announced that federal civil rights lawsuit for the infringement of our first and 14th Amendment rights. And everyone that is listed is on the state preservation board because they they oversee the building.
00:18:47
Speaker
and access. So that's Governor Greg Abbott, Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick, Dustin Brose is the speaker, Charles Schwartner, who's my former senator. and We both are from Georgetown. that was really nice.
00:18:59
Speaker
And then there are two civilians that are on that. And so we are suing them in their capacity on the board, not individually, right, for those. those folks Although I would love to sue the others personally, but right Yeah, so, you know, in the last two weeks, how I understand it, they will live they'll be served, excuse me, and they'll have an opportunity to respond.
00:19:24
Speaker
And so we fully expect that they will try and get it dismissed. But, you know, what I've been told, it's a really good, and I'm not a legal expert by any means, right? I'm not a lawyer, but how I understand it, um this district, the Western District, like a lot of good rulings come out of that.
Purpose and Goals of the Lawsuit
00:19:40
Speaker
so it's no surprise that they're going to try and get it removed but it likely won't is how i understand it um because they're going to want to block discovery discovery is where i think we'll find quite a few things of who made that order what was the reasoning
00:19:54
Speaker
And then again, there's no due process. You can't ban someone. Our charges were rejected, meaning is it never happened per se, right? Like we were not convicted of a crime or even charged with a crime because the county DA a said, yeah, no, I'm not accepting this.
00:20:12
Speaker
So it really makes no sense that they are choosing to uphold the law. And we're not a danger to anyone either. Snowflakes is what I'll say. no like um I'm a former Western District of Texas law clerk. Oh, okay. Judge Yackel before he retired.
00:20:30
Speaker
So now that he's out and we actually, I think we learned that Judge Albright is also retiring or going back to the public private sector. It should just be Judge Pittman left at the Western District. Is that right? Very familiar. Yeah, that should be the judge presiding over your case. And then, ah yeah, you you you nailed it on the head. They have time to answer is is the the legal term. And they're going to answer and they're probably going to try to move to dismiss the case based on probably some technical argument, right? They'll say that you don't have standing or...
00:21:03
Speaker
They're protected by sovereign immunity, which means you can't see the government under certain circumstances. Or they'll say that, you know, there's not really a cognizable harm here.
00:21:15
Speaker
They'll come up with some sort of way to say, even if what we did is bad, who cares? It's sexist. I can do whatever I want. yeah We'll see what they come up with, what what arguments they they'll make with a straight face. We'll see.
00:21:30
Speaker
Well, I wonder, Alice and our are lawyers, so we like to dive into this stuff, but I wonder if the way that they've gotten away with this kind of thing is that if the... ban is only a year, then you only have a year to really bring any sort of lawsuit, at which point we have a term in the legal community is now it's moot, right? You're welcome back. So you're not really harmed.
00:21:52
Speaker
But I think that this isn't just about past harms, if I'm understanding this, it's about the future and what it means for other people in your position. So Yes, this is about the redress for you, Angel, and the other two women with you. But what do you think about this going forward for other people? and And also like the broader picture of what's going on in the other things that Republicans are doing to limit our rights, to to take away our limit and dilute our vote and to preserve power at all costs.
00:22:23
Speaker
Absolutely, right? Like this is so much bigger than the four of us that were arrested and the three of us in this lawsuit, right? It is to prevent future harm. This is the steps, right? There's so many things that when I think about how we even got to this moment to to the racist maps that they passed last year, but then in 2021 is to roll us back into time, into a time where we have li lit tests, litmus tests on who you can vote. And we don't want women, right? We don't want brown and black folks. We don't want members of the LGBTQ plus community. be represented in the halls of of government. And so if they can do it to us, they can do it to anybody, right?
00:22:59
Speaker
The Alabama speaker literally said about a month ago, my next goal is to roll back the 14th Amendment, right? Like boldly on TV, right?
00:23:11
Speaker
Due process, birthright citizenship, What I keep saying, what are we doing? Right. like And I'm like, I know what we're doing. They're trying to make, quote unquote, America great again and take us back into damn near the Stone Ages.
Motivation and Historical Context for Advocacy
00:23:24
Speaker
It's it's it's a little like on the nose to be like ah from a former Confederate state saying, let's get rid of the civil right like amendments that came out of the Civil War. And right, like, in Alabama, at the capital of Montgomery, the former capital of the Confederacy, like, it's not lost on me.
00:23:45
Speaker
And so, yeah, it's it's so much bigger. it's It's so much larger than ourself and We're not the first. And unfortunately, I don't know that we'll be the last, but I'm not I'm not going to take it sitting down.
00:23:58
Speaker
i mean You know, Kate and I are not your lawyers and you're not our client. But her point about moodness is is an interesting one. It makes me wonder maybe there ought to be some sort of um like a ah TRO injunction effort because you said it's currently affecting your your ability to do work. Right.
00:24:15
Speaker
Yeah. le Yeah. Like I said, I'm i'm on this ah commission, this collaborative council, and not all of our meetings are virtual. Some of them are in person. I can't show up. You're talking about like, I got to be thoughtful when I'm walking around downtown because I don't, you know there's so many buildings that are a part of that capital complex and they could just decide to arrest me.
00:24:34
Speaker
Because to Kate's point, there's there's no way this lawsuit will resolve this. In a year. and in In a year. Yeah, there's just won't just like the normal process of things. it just won't. But if you got some sort of early temporary restraining order, you know, in an injunction that says during dependency of this lawsuit, Angel has the right to go to work.
00:24:56
Speaker
And that might be a symbolic victory. Yeah, I'll talk to Brian that. Yeah. Just legal information, not advice. yeah For our listeners as well, if you have need emergency relief. so But I wanted to tie all these things together because it seems to me we got here because Republicans did mid-census redistricting.
00:25:14
Speaker
yeah i And then you guys are protesting the effects of that. And now they're saying, na you can't do that. And they're saying, I want to do something that is probably illegal, but the Supreme Court probably will let me do it anyways.
00:25:30
Speaker
And then now that we are now protesting it or saying what you're doing is wrong, we're not going to let you do that either. yeah so it's maddening. And I have such anger ah for myself and other Texans and you because of this. And it just it's like what the Republicans to me, it seems like they're only winning because of these sort of gotcha procedural things. They are not standing on policy. They're not standing on what they're providing to our communities.
00:25:55
Speaker
We're not better off in the last 30 years. And yet, what are they clinging to so hard that they need to ban Angel Carroll from Capitol for a year? And for what point? Like, what what do they need to be doing? I mean, how do you reflect on that in this, like, bigger picture and fight that we have?
00:26:11
Speaker
I mean, you said it. they They can't have any wins without cheating. They lie, steal, cheat, and destroy. and That is what the Republican Party is damn good at right now.
00:26:23
Speaker
it's It's a really sad moment where we are. Kate, don't, I just, I can't. my Are you tired? I mean, how do you have hope and fight for this? Because, like, gearing up for a lawsuit is not a is not an easy thing, right? Like, I know you said it was as easy as talking to Brian, but it really isn't. and i want to give you more credit because as a litigator and someone who fights in federal courts all the time, and also as a federal law clerk, like, this takes a lot to be able to gear up for. So how do you gear up for that fight? How do you still have hope?
00:26:53
Speaker
You know... I credit, I guess, a lot of my resilience to my childhood on what I've been through, right? And I always feel like i've I've been through far worse, so I can make this far, I can make it, you know, keep going.
00:27:06
Speaker
It was, I will say it wasn't until the day of, you know, when we were getting ready to announce the lawsuit that it actually hit me like oh, well, like you're actually doing this, right? Because we know that Republicans, especially Dan Patrick and Abbott are very vindictive. So there's no telling what, you know, what recourse is coming my way and the weird things that will happen in my life, right?
00:27:25
Speaker
Because we know that's a very, very real here. Well, and now also Trump nominated Paxton. Ken Paxton, yeah. It'll have the same effect, Kate. He's he's basically he's basically in the Senate. The Senate nomination is...
00:27:38
Speaker
I don't know. Like, i I guess maybe I'm disassociated from it, to be honest. Like, I've been through worse. What other choice do I have? Like, there are people that died for my right to vote. There are people that died for my constitutional rights. The least I can do is protest when they are being infringed on. The least I could do is protest when they are trying to take away our ability to to vote.
00:28:06
Speaker
The least I can do is fight for the right to practice and due process. That's the least I can do. So yeah it's scary. Yeah, it's stressful. But again, there are people that have died, bled, been beaten for this. That's the least I can do.
00:28:25
Speaker
Well, it's a apropos of this moment because this episode will come out the week after Memorial Day. And this is a time where we remember the people who swore an oath to our Constitution. And I was talking to some people last night at an event that we swear an oath as veterans, as former service members to the Constitution. We don't swear it to to the president, or or at least as officers, the president, to a party, to a position, they start to that constitution. and I would give up my life for that thing, you know, a piece of paper that embodies our democracy and people have. So I love what I'm hearing from you about that, because, you know, I think that
00:28:59
Speaker
I feel similarly in that why am I still in Texas, right? Like, why am I still allowing my daughter to be raised here? It's because I'm going to continue to fight for the state and fight for our people, fight for our daughters and sons.
00:29:11
Speaker
So I feel very similarly. Beto O'Rourke makes a good point that like, in addition to people who serve in uniform, like people who bled and died in the civil rights movement, continuing to put their lives on the line in very real places.
00:29:24
Speaker
material ways. I mean, they they also are fighting for that constitution, making the dream of America real, right? The promise, that beloved community Dr. King used to speak about. Yeah. Well, speaking of Angel, can we segue to your trip to Alabama recently to the protests? So tell us about the protest and also what what was your experience down there in Alabama? And I want to talk a little bit about afterwards of my love for that that area as well.
00:29:51
Speaker
Yes, so myself and a few other Texans and content creators, we've heard about all roads to leads all roads lead to the South in Montgomery, Alabama to fight for voting rights as we're seeing what started in Texas, right? And an and what we're seeing in Louisiana and Tennessee and just Virginia across this country to show up to the birthplace of you know the civil rights fight, to the the birthplace of democracy. Montgomery is the former capital, former capital of the Confederacy, right? It started there.
00:30:26
Speaker
It was a profound experience. we We were only there, we weren't even there for 72 hours we drove, so I've got to go back and really take it all in, but my, my, my goodness, the drive to Montgomery felt like a pilgrimage, right?
00:30:41
Speaker
So going from Texas to Louisiana and driving over ripe swamps and seeing plantations and thinking how resilient runaway slaves were and the fear, right? And the real fear of like, you are wading through crocodile infested waters, but it's worth, freedom is worth the risk.
00:31:04
Speaker
And then getting to Mississippi, I've never actually been through Mississippi, but my great-great-grandfather, father, Johnny Grays, bought 114 acres in 1911 from his former slave master's wife. We did not get that 40 acres in a wheel, but he bought it, and it's still in our family. So it was a sense of pride for me to come back to a space where my ancestors, right, built built their lives after being freed. But as a group saying, okay, after we've taken the sign at the border, right, like so many Black folks during Jim Crow South who said, we're not going to stop in this state because of the real
00:31:41
Speaker
ah risk of lynching and and racism. And so we didn't. And we didn't stop until we got to Africatown, Alabama, which is just south of Mobile. And just so much history and then getting to Selma and walking the bridge and realizing that drive, that 45-minute drive from Montgomery to Selma was long.
00:31:59
Speaker
They walked in kitten heels and suits. That was not easy. and again, going back to what I said earlier, how could we not? fight and then just how intentional the landscape is and the fact that Alabama prisons and the Capitol is bright white it is a sterile white for a reason and it faces Dexter Avenue and the Dexter Avenue I think it's Dexter Avenue Baptist Martin I must screw up the name so God please forgive me but the church where Dr. King pastored and is now a memorial church faces the Capitol and
00:32:35
Speaker
But right between that street is a fountain, right, where slaves would be taken off of the ship, off that river, onto the ship, and put on that fountain. They stand on a block, and that was the block that they would sell slaves on, facing the Alabama state capitol. And then across the street from that is a statue of Rosa Parks, because that is where she got arrested. I mean, there's just so much history, so how can...
00:33:02
Speaker
So how can we not fight? And the fact that they had it in Montgomery, it's just, it was beautiful.
Civil Rights Struggles: Past and Present
00:33:10
Speaker
Well, I wanted to mention that I spent a lot of time in Montgomery because of the Air Force. And i'm proud that they brought an Air Force base there.
00:33:19
Speaker
And they that that's where I had my training. That's where I had my JAG school training. And we had passes where we would get get to do whatever we want. Some people went to Atlanta or to the beach and My friends and I did the trek from Montgomery to Selma and saw the bridge and we stopped at all the museums. And yeah, it's a long haul. And to also see that there are museums from the national federal government that are there and celebrating and memorializing this trek and to know that this is such an important part of our history. But just thinking about what we're dealing with now compared to that and what all that might have meant in that moment.
00:33:58
Speaker
I agree. I really enjoyed my time learning about that in Alabama and being there. I was just going to mention that when my wife went to SMU, she was able to participate in something they called the civil rights pilgrimage. And i actually really appreciate the kind of phrasing there. It's intentional. It kind of connotes the kind of sacredness, the kind of this almost religious aspect of it. At its core, right, like Dr. King and so many of the other leaders were religious leaders they were people of faith and being able to go to I just looked it up some of the places that they got to go to you know Little Rock, Arkansas, Jackson, Mississippi, Selma and Montgomery, Alabama, Birmingham, Oxford, Mississippi, Memphis, all these really pivotal moments in not just black history but like American history yes and yeah in a way like
00:34:48
Speaker
the history of the world, like the the human race was made so much better. We got so much further along because of the sacrifices those people made, not only for the Civil Rights Act, but for the Voting Rights Act. And to see the kind of intentional, years-long efforts to roll back those protections, including now recently with the Kalei decision, it's just It's so disheartening to realize that not everyone agrees that that was a good period in our history. I know it's still faux pas to bring up Charlie Kirk, but he did not think that Martin Luther King was a person worth celebrating. And he he didn't think the civil rights movement was a net positive for for humanity. And...
00:35:34
Speaker
Or that it happened, right? or Or that it happened. And that was the most like frustrating thing too, is seeing the comments that I got of like, what rights are they taking away? like know And then just pointing out like y'all, right? The black people, y'all are just making this up. And it's just like, this is also why they're trying to take away education because there's so much growing up in Texas, right? That they don't tell us about our own history. Now you're watching, you're seeing this.
00:35:58
Speaker
And then the reminder that this wasn't that long ago. Yeah. and And women were being hysterical about Roe v. Wade being overturned, too, until it was. truly Truly. I mean, Joseph Smither was the mayor of Selma on Bloody Sunday, and he only got removed from office in 2000, in the year 2000.
00:36:17
Speaker
Like, that is very recent. There are very, you know, Kate, you mentioned the museums. We went to the lynching museum. And saw every county in Texas has a pillar. And it was just so powerful in seeing the number of lynchings that happened in one day Brazos County, Texas, to see Williamson County, Dallas County, Harris County, to see that, and that some of those dates were 1911.
00:36:47
Speaker
1960, like it was not that long ago. We watched the news. There are still people getting lynched today. it's just a matter. Is it a lynching that we're going to acknowledge? Yeah. And to that point, Sherman, Texas has the oldest Confederate monument. I know, Kate, I mention Sherman all the time. You do. But it's it's a relevant place. I love it.
00:37:07
Speaker
Sherman, Texas has the oldest Confederate monument, and it's on the courthouse grounds. Mm-hmm. And that has never sat right with me. i bring it up because right after the Dylann Roof, you know mass shooting at the church, i I remember I started, I think it was like a change.org or one of those petition websites.
00:37:30
Speaker
and I had just started in the Air Force Reserve and I was like in Intel school and i put up this petition, like we should move the Confederate monuments off of the courthouse stuff. This should not be the first thing somebody should be seeing as they're walking in to try to find justice.
00:37:48
Speaker
awesome And you would have thought, man, peed in somebody's Cheerios because i like it's it it rattled the the hornet's nest of white supremacists in in Sherman.
00:37:59
Speaker
And people were like, you should never come back here. like, I was good by president of Sherman High School and Austin College. Like Sherman is my place. I love that place. You know, Alex, you were about to be banned. I'm telling you, I think there might have been an effort to get me banned from Sherman.
00:38:16
Speaker
I just wanted to make two follow-up comments. One about the whitewashing of history. i remember when I was in officer school, we made a point to go to the Tuskegee Airmen Museum, which is nearby.
00:38:28
Speaker
and that was amazing. But also just seeing how much the current secretary of war is trying to erase some of that history in our own Air Force and how much we have to keep remembering it. And I'm glad that at least in my office or school, we made a point to go to that.
00:38:45
Speaker
But also I lived in Virginia for four years while my husband was in the army and we were there right in Charlottesville, right after the Tiki torches, if you remember. And that was over the Confederate statues that were sitting at the steps of the state courthouse, similar to what y'all are saying. And just the after effects of what that town went through in central Virginia.
00:39:06
Speaker
But I mean, before we head into our last segments, I mean, can you tell us about like, how was the protest? How are the vibes? know, what the takeaways? What are the marching orders? Yeah, the vibes were great. It was hot. ah But the vibes were great. We had folks in the audience and speakers who marched on Bloody Sunday there. You had my customer, you had we had Gen Zers there, right? So like, it was truly I feel like representative of ah different generations and backgrounds, which was beautiful, obviously. um And members of Congress from across the country, white, black, brown, Asia, it was just, it was really beautiful. And the marching orders, there are quite a few, right? But one we've got to continue to fight. We have to continue to speak up.
00:39:48
Speaker
Now more than ever, our voices, they're trying to take our voice away. And because of that, we cannot be quiet. We cannot afford to quite literally sit back and watch them take us back. And so that means Not just making sure that everyone is registered to vote, right? And also not just making sure that everyone goes to vote because the thing is, is we need people to know what's on the ballot, what these roles do, town halls, right?
00:40:11
Speaker
As a former candidate in folks in the space, you know, you have the the nonprofit side and the C4 side and the PACs, and there's always this conversation of, well, I can't talk about partisan politics, so I can just register people to vote, but that
Community Engagement and Call to Action
00:40:23
Speaker
doesn't seem enough. What else can I do?
00:40:25
Speaker
Town halls. on what an AG does, what a lieutenant governor does, what your city council does. because so It's so important. it's It's local. It starts on that local level, but you have to get people to go top to bottom.
00:40:38
Speaker
um They are making voting so hard and it's so intentional. They want us to be tired and we have to, as I say, we have to keep working that muscle. You know, we have runoffs on May 26th and this will be, um I'm going to vote later the day today, will be the eighth time that I've voted in the last 12 months.
00:40:56
Speaker
A time runoff special elections. March 3rd, had 114 items on my ballot. We have to educate folks on what they're voting for and making sure that we are voting people that are qualified in right, not just based off of good vibes either.
00:41:10
Speaker
We have to sue. Right. that's why I did what I did. When they violate our rights, we have to sue. And yes, I know suing costs money. I'm grateful for Brian and the Austin Community Law Center because i know I'm currently unemployed. So I don't have the money to hire attorney. Right. But there are people that are willing to support people that want to fight and push back. And we need to volunteer and get involved with your local Democratic Party to figure out how you can and activate your neighbors and your church.
00:41:41
Speaker
You know, we have to get creative. This is not business as usual, which also means that we cannot just utilize the resources that we have historically used, which is why I'm online talking about it. Right. Social media is a new form of media. Podcasts are a new form of media and news. And so that is how you also reach out and connect with folks that kind of survive as working class Texans.
00:42:04
Speaker
Yeah, and well, since you said May 26, I think that's the perfect segue into our our next segment, which is one of our new things we love to do. It's called good news. We have to get into the habit as as people who are not Republicans, who are fighting people who are very comfortable being evangelical. We got to start flexing those those muscles. And so one of the things we like to do is ask people what their good news is. Something so good, you just got to share it And I want to start actually. We usually let the guests go first because you said May 26th. I was triggered because May 26th.
00:42:39
Speaker
Triggered in a good way. ah May 26th is my anniversary. And my wife who and I will have been married for 14 years on May 26th. We got married a week after I graduated from college. And and thats that's yeah and we've we've lived a lot of life together. you know Our marriage is becoming a freshman in high school basically. you know And we're looking forward to it.
00:43:02
Speaker
It takes a lot, Alex. I mean, I'm only married like seven years, so that's tough. ah But congrats to you. Are you guys doing anything special? Yeah, so we're going to Austin this weekend. We'll we'll have a night to ourselves on the the night itself, the Tuesday. um And then we are also going to Orlando.
00:43:25
Speaker
Orlando is where I'm going to be going to like a how to manage a small law firm workshop. We're going to make it a the two of us and let let um let some people watch the kids so that we can spend the night out in Orlando as well. it's Awesome. about you, Angel? What's going on in your life? Oh, my goodness. So the 27th actually is my birthday. um happy Happy birthday. Thank you. it's It's a milestone for me, actually. So I turned 31 and I know everyone's like, 30 is more of a milestone. I actually i don't think I've ever said this publicly.
00:43:55
Speaker
At 16, I was in a real, I was in one of the youth prisons. I remember praying, God, if you help me, if I can get to 30, I promise you my prayer was if I get to 30, I will, you know, use this time of my life, right, to to change. Make everything that I've gone through worth worth it, right? Which has been my guiding star for the last couple of years. So actually a couple of days before I got arrested, I told some friends, I was like, I'm tired, right? I i want to get out of this space. And then I got arrested, you know, right now it's to, you know, I'm obviously not, thought out of it right why I never thought that I would see 30 I mean it literally was like if I just get to 30 like I don't care if I see 31 and so I never planned my life past 30 so I get to say that I'm 31 um i was the youngest governor appointee I mean I'm getting I mean crazy I'm into master's programs right now I'm I'm on tv I'm i'm living my best life and so I'm just grateful to be alive so yeah yeah my good news is I'm alive and I'm thriving You are
00:44:55
Speaker
Yes, you are thriving. Making a world a better place. Well, um mine, I went to a Richardson Area Democrats event last night, and i spoke to a bunch of people about why we should elect veterans. And you know speaking of, and we have a lot of veterans running for office right now, and was just such a great event, and I really appreciated being able to speak to fellow Democrats and have fellowship and So that was a really great evening. And I have to give a shout out, though, to somebody. I and don't know if you guys have ever felt this when you're speaking, but you get like a deer in a headlights type thing where might have gone off cuff and then you forget something.
00:45:30
Speaker
And in that moment, I had a I was trying to give a shout out to all the veteran candidates in the room and I forgot one. And he is a listener of the podcast. And I was trying to like, people were like, Oh, it's Zach. And I was like, Matt, Zach. And so want to give a shout out to him right now because I bungled his name and he was in the back of the room and I totally forgot about him. So shout out to Zach. Who's running up here in North Texas in a house district that is the most flippable seat up here. So that was my goodness. 21 and Chen Button. Yep.
00:46:01
Speaker
So he's a JAG former, not former. They're always a Marine, right? Once a Marine, always Marine. a Marine, always a Marine. All right. Well, Angel, we're going head into our last segment. Before we do, i want to put a plug into our Patreon. So if you want to support us as independent media, like Angel, like us, then please help us to free the costs by joining our Patreon for a few dollars a month. Or you can support us by giving a five-star review wherever you get your podcasts and share our social media. And also please share Angel's social media because she's out there as well. all right, Angel, we haven't really gotten into this, but really the premise of our podcast is about flipping the state. I know you care about that as well, and you are a part of that big, beautiful story. So you are our general.
00:46:45
Speaker
We are your soldiers. Give us the marching orders on what we as individuals could specifically do to flip the state from your perspective, but also just the state writ large. Yeah, you know, i always talk about, and that y'all will definitely understand this, what is the mission? The mission and the guiding star is to flip Texas blue.
00:47:03
Speaker
There's always going to be side quests and things on the side of the road that we might get distracted for, but we have to remember what our mission is. It doesn't mean that we have to ignore the things on the side of the road, but at the end of the day, we have to be able to get back on the truck and say we have to keep pushing forward through the fog. And so that means, can we have real conversations, but understand where we're going and that we need to support good Democrats and making sure that um all of our candidates and fellow voters have the resources that they need.
00:47:39
Speaker
and that we're we're spreading the wealth and the knowledge, right? and When I say that, that means I know, i may know something. I may know um that this this roadblock on getting access to where voting locations are and how it may change election day. And I need to make sure that my friends and family um know that.
00:47:59
Speaker
And I need to make sure that I'm putting my own comfort to the side. um It is as easy as picking up your phone and and then recording a video. I know that that is very worrisome and makes people uncomfortable. It makes me uncomfortable, believe it or not.
00:48:13
Speaker
But what is the mission to make sure that everyone knows when, where, and how to vote. And there are so many tools out there that we have to be able to utilize and put our egos aside. and that's the big thing. Our egos get the way every election cycle. And i think the moment that we're able to put that to the side, we'll really be able to flip Texas.
00:48:35
Speaker
and Sometimes I feel like we're our own worst enemies in that regard as Democrats. And just as a brief aside, I mean, the DNC ah report or whatever you want to call it, autopsy recently came out. So we're digesting that at the moment.
00:48:51
Speaker
Angel, thank you so much. How can we support you? How can we support your lawsuit more importantly? Yeah, you know, we're still talking about what that what support that looks like. I think right now, as you mentioned, it's a lot to take on emotionally. And this is only the beginning. So, you know, the encouragement that everyone is giving is really helpful, you know,
00:49:12
Speaker
Shameless plug, follow myself and the other women that are running, Megan Toohey, Jessica Cohen, and Jill Von Boris, because again, there's just a long fight ahead. It's nice to know that we have people on our side.
00:49:25
Speaker
um And as soon as I have, you know, a concrete way that y'all can support us, I will definitely let everyone know. Again, we're just kind of in that like early phase, that early phase. Well, thank you, Angel. That is it for us. And we will see our guests next week. And God bless Texas.
00:49:42
Speaker
You can follow us on all socials at Mission Texas Podcast. Email us at missiontexaspodcast at gmail.com. This episode is edited by Juan Jose Flores.
00:49:53
Speaker
Our music bumper is by Adam Pickerel, and our cover art is by Tino Sohn.