Carolyn Foote

Let’s get out the vote! There is so much on the line so do not sit this out! Let your voice be heard! 📍⏰Check wait times for Bexar County voting locations: maps.bexar.org/ElectionWait... @bexardems.bsky.social #Vote #SanAntonio #BexarCounty

My heart is heavy. Walter Koenig, our Ensign Pavel Chekov, passed away early today. Walter and I met on the bridge of the Enterprise in the 1960s, and we stayed friends for nearly six decades. When Brad and I married in 2008, Walter stood beside us as our best man.

Time to vote! Fort Worth looking at you! Travis County looking at you! Bexar County!

Four Days Into Early Voting Tarrant County: 211,676 votes cast 49% ahead of 2022 18% ahead of 2018 Just 13% behind 2024 (Presidential) Tarrant County is showing up. But who is voting? I run through some of the stats in this video. Full details on all of this at data.seeitnameitfightit.com/turnout

San Antonio showed up for our next Governor of Texas, Gina Hinojosa! Vote Early, Texas!! 🗳️ @ginafortexas.bsky.social

I just took my mom to early vote via curbside. Went well in ATX!

Check out @everylibrary.bsky.social new Substack monthly roundup of library advocacy stories! everylibrary.substack.com/p/the-septem...

📣Let’s go Texas! Early voting for the General Election has begun!🗳️ There is so much on the line so make sure to VOTE EARLY! Share this information with family and friends and make sure they vote! #Vote #SanAntonio #BexarCounty #txlege

Texans- check this guide before voting for school board!

Proud to stand with Rep. Gina Hinojosa for Governor of Texas! She will support ALL TEXANS and we must do all we can to ensure she is our next Governor! 🗳️ Support and follow: 🔹 @ginafortexas.bsky.social 🔹 ginafortexas.com

Let books be. Let books represent the beautiful, diverse world we live in and the many (oftentimes difficult) moments of life that readers of all ages experience. Let books serve as windows and mirrors, and let them do their job of saying “Hey, you’re not alone.”

So great that @studentsengaged.bsky.social has brought students together to have a voice in Tx politics and for hearings about Texas bills the last several years. Their voices should be the most important ones. #txlege

Bonnie Wallace claimed the Dan Patrick list as her own. Which means all the mistakes on it are hers. @laneyhawes.bsky.social #txlege

It would be great if Senators not only listened to the problems that censors brought to the education committee but the problems actual librarians brought to the committee too. There are logistical problems. @menendez4texas.bsky.social

I am deeply disappointed that we didn't get to testify on each bill. I wanted to talk about SB12 and the censorship that occurred because of it, particularly to titles by black authors. @menendez4texas.bsky.social #txlege

A question today's Tx Senate Ed hearing brings up? Should we let one person decide for all of us what our children read?#txlege txfreadomfighters.substack.com/p/should-one...

"The district used literary merit to determine what books should stay on the shelf." - an actual objection at this hearing #txlege

Sadly, @txfreedomread.bsky.social has gathered a lot of information about book removals in Texas, and only one Senator is here to hear them. #txlege

Love the two librarians who want so much for kids to read, but the dampening delays caused by SB13 is zapping kids enthusiasm, because what kid wants to wait six months for a book? @menendez4texas.bsky.social

By the way, we drove to the capitol, waited all morning for this ONE Senate education hearing, and there is ONE Senator on the dais to listen. Menendez explained his departure but no one else has. Pathetic. #txlege

Appreciate @menendez4texas.bsky.social thoughtful questioning throughout this hearing, & sorry he had to leave. Disappointing that bill's author Sen. Paxton wasn't here for much of the testimony with details about tweaks needed to her bill so that librarians can focus on students, not ISBN number

It was pretty satisfying in our testimony to refute Llano censor Bonnie Wallace's booklist which Lt. Gov Dan Patrick used at his meeting to call out vulgarity, w Bonnie sitting in the audience. I handed legislators a copy of all of the Jewish themed books on her so-called vulgar booklist. #txlege

What I wanted to say, @laneyhawes.bsky.social said - libraries don't have "schmut" and that her rights as a parent are being violated when the state dictates instead of local community values which is what SB13 actually required. Is Texas going to ban books at the state level, next? #txlege

At the Tx Senate Ed committee hearing, @laneyhawes.bsky.social rightly points out that when censors don't like the results of state required committees of parents, then they aren't really for parents rights. #txlege

Lengthy admonition about schmut from Senator Donna Campbell. Hard to explain how frustrating it is that people don't understand that books are complex, that a curse word isn't schmut, and that classic quality novels contain such words. What qualifies to parents as safe obviously differs. #txlege

We’re at the anti-Islam portion of the TX senate Ed meeting. Testifiers are sharing about the horrors of halal food served in school cafeterias & kids wearing hijabs. A lady from Lubbock suggested charging teachers w/ treason who promote sharia law, communism & who don’t protect our way of life.

Lubbock's Susan Perez is airing her grievances w/Lubbock ISD at the Senate Ed hearing, including "she couldn't find the button on the website to click" which isn't the state's problem. Next up, someone from Take Back the Classroom, a TN group, wanting to remove books. #txlege

Is a library book (voluntary reading) really a danger to kids like asbestos? Sen Paxton thinks so. #txlege

The Tx Public Policy attack on Arabic at the Tx Senate hearing seems to ignore the fact that we use Arabic in math every day in the U.S. #txlege

Sen. Menendez pointed out that there is a lengthy wait for public prek which should be addressed before expanding vouchers. #txlege

Where I will be today...

Sen Menendez points out that homeschoolers will not be tested. #txlege

I think they said 30% of funds are going to homeschoolers? Whoa. #txlege

It started off with Sen. Royce West grilling the comptroller's witness about the fact that 37% of students in the program wanted pre-k or K, and his point being that it demonstrated a need for child care in Texas. West schooled new chair Donna Campbell also ;) #txlege

At the Tx Senate Education Committee hearing today to testify on SB12 and SB13, but listening now to the voucher bill discussion. #txlege

High take up of vouchers among home school parents according to Tx Comptroller's office. Hmm. #txlege

Oct 7, the Tx Senate Ed committee will hold a hearing regarding SB13's impacts. (and other bills also). Last session, book banners were ther, but we want to show real world impacts on teachers, librarians and parents. If you want to testify, please reach out to @txfreedomread.bsky.social or to us.

Let books be inspiring. Let books be thought- provoking. Let books be strange. Let books be funny. Let books be childlike. Let books BE. @amlibraryassoc.bsky.social @penamerica.bsky.social

Last time Tx Dems felt hopeless about winning and didn’t vote. But now, we have a real chance to win something! Whether it’s Talarico and Senate, Gina for Governor or seats down ballot, we are going to win if we show up. Let’s donate and let’s vote!

It’s Banned Books Week this week. At FReadom Fighters we are beginning our sixth year of supporting the freedom to read and the librarians and students who defend it. We applaud all the small and large acts of courage that it takes to stand up for the right to read. 💕💕💕💕💕💕💕

That Librarian, Amanda Jones @librarianjones.com, talks about the mental health realities of fighting censorship, influential leaders and literature that have guided her work, and why she believes the pendulum is swinging back in favor of the freedom to read. www.liberatinglit.com/episodes/lib...

This is not only a great way to fight book bans but it’ll be a blast!