Wiseup Tx

In honor of Black History Month, it is important to learn about the many struggles the African American community faced during the Civil Rights movement and how it impacted the South Asian community. If the Civil Rights movement never happened, most South Asians wouldn't even be in America. I interviewed Anirvan Chatterjee, the founder of BlackDesiSecretHistory.org, to learn about the history of solidarity between the two communities and what the South Asian community can do to better overcome anti-black sentiment. Tune in to learn more!

The Texas Legislature is in full swing and deciding the best ways to utilize your tax dollars. Last week the Governor gave the State of the State and at the top of the list are increasing funding for public schools and lowering property taxes. Many Texans don't realize that the two issues are correlated to one another. Thankfully, Comptroller Hegar gives us an overview of the Texas budget for this biennium and explains how public school finance and property taxes work hand in hand.

Ready to talk about the Democratic Presidential candidates for 2020 and the Bills Tho Pagal Hai in the Texas Legislature? We sure are!

VOTE 2018 by WiseUp TX

Justin Nelson states his campaign is about Integrity v. Indictment. The current AG, Ken Paxton, has been indicted but not proven guilty. Justin believes his campaign can bring transparency and integrity back to the Attorney General's office. Tune in to hear more about his campaign platform!

Are you concerned about the lunches served at your child’s school? Concerned about the produce and meat you consume? Ever wondered where or how you can even make an impact in those areas? Well, this is where the Agricultural Commissioner comes in and YOU get to have a say as to who that will be this November. The incumbent, Sid Miller, has had plenty of contentious news despite his work on the job. He has compared Syrian refugees to rattlesnakes, used taxpayer dollars to get the “Jesus shot”, and posting jokes about Pakistan recruiting suicide bombers from a suicide hotline. So, check out our interview with Kim Olson and hear about her platform and how she hopes to include the diversity of Texans in the food you eat!

Interview w/Ravi Sandill for Texas Supreme Court Justice by WiseUp TX

I attended some policy festivals and panels these past two weeks: The Texas Tribune Festival (Austin), the Atlantic Festival (DC), and the Women Who Impact panel (IMPACT). We've had a pretty tumultuous few weeks with the Kavanaugh hearing and drama--so of course this topic was prevalent at all the events. Tune in to hear my recap of these panels and my thoughts as to what is in store for us this November!

The position of Lt. Governor is considered one of the most powerful positions in Texas government. The Lt. Governor has the ability to kill legislation within the Texas Senate, administer procedural maneuvers to by pass the minority party's votes, and effectively have a hand in the many policies the state legislature passes. Our current Lt. Governer is Dan Patrick (R) and his opponent Mike Collier (D) thinks he can do the job better. Tune in and hear about Mike Collier's background and why he thinks he is a better candidate for Lt. Governor!

The deadline to register to vote in Texas is less than a month away. It is imperative to ensure as many South Asian Texans are registered to vote. Our vote can make a major difference in several statewide races in Texas and give our community a seat at the table. Tune in to hear an overview of who will be on your ballot come November and the uphill climb Democrats face in the statewide races including Beto's.

A very Happy Raksha Bandhan to our listeners! And Happy Women's Equality Day to our fellow females! Equality for women has come a long way but there is still so much more work to be done. Tune in to hear some of the many issue women still face today. We continue discussing the platforms of the Texas Republican and Democratic Parties. This week's segment is about Immigration issues. Learn about the Immigration issues impacting the South Asian community and how each party's platform intends to address them. Don't forget the deadline to vote is October 9th and Election Day is November 6th!

And so we continue our understanding of the Texas GOP and Democratic party platforms. Today's segment is about Healthcare. There are several healthcare issues plaguing our state which are not only impacting our economy but the lives of millions of Texans. Tune in to hear the many healthcare problems our state is facing, and what each political party is aiming to do about them.

Both the Republican and Democratic parties had their state party convention last month. At their respective conventions, each party developed their party's platform for what their party stood for. We are focusing a few of our podcasts on certain issues we feel are important for the South Asian community to understand. This segment we focus on Education. Tune in to hear the highlights of each party's platform on Education and some of the differences between the two parties. With the midterm elections less than four months away, it is imperative for our community to begin Wising Up on their candidates!

Tune in to hear about the current affairs of the state of Texas and our nation. And hear from a South Asian Muslim candidate who faced an insurmountable amount of bigotry during his campaign and still won by 37 votes. This segment covers what our Texas politicians are doing/saying about gun reform after the horrific Santa Fe shootings; what we can do about the current DHS revelation: 1500 kids are lost and separated from their parents after crossing the US Border; the outcome of the Texas Primary Runoffs; AND an interview with recently elected Euless City Councilman Salman Bhojani. Our community is WINNING against Islamaphobia but LOSING when it comes to gun reform.

If you live in Congressional District 7 (parts of Houston), the Democratic Primary has been a contentious one and heavily covered by the media. Laura Moser, who is running to be the Democratic nominee for CD-7, had opposition research used against her by the DCCC in the March Primary Election. The DCCC claimed she was too progressive for the district she is running for. Texans, don't like non-Texans telling them what to do, still gave her enough votes to send her off into a heated Democratic Primary Runoff. Early voting has begun in the state of Texas for the Primary Runoffs with Election Day on May 22nd. Tune in to hear what Laura has to say about this upcoming runoff election, learn more about her platform, how it is to be a mother and running for office, and why she thinks she'd be the better Democratic nominee to go up against Rep. Culberson in November. Don't forget to early vote this week or vote on election day (May 22nd) for the Primary Runoffs!

Here my thoughts on the results from the 2018 Texas Primary

The Texas Primary is on March 6th, 2018.  Our third interview is with Chetan Panda, he is running in Texas Congressional District 25 which encompasses the cities of Wimberly, parts of Austin and areas south of Fort Worth.

The Texas Primary is on March 6th, 2018. Our second political candidate interview is with Tahir Javed, he is running in Texas Congressional District 29 which encompasses the cities of Pasadena, Southeast Houston to Northwest Houston. Tune in to hear more about him!

There are three South Asians running for Congress in Texas! All three are competing in the Democratic Primary which is on March 6, 2018. Our first interview is with Sri Preston Kulkarni who is running for Congress in Texas District 22, which encompasses Sugarland, Pearland and Katy. Tune in to hear about his platform and what motivated him to run for office.

This week's segment focuses on our interview with Imam Omar Suleiman. We discuss what led him to move to Dallas from NOLA, what it was like for him and his family when ISIS targeted him, and how he intertwines his Islamic faith for standing up for social injustices for EVERYONE! Tune in below to hear all about it!