Leslie Rangel, a first generation daughter of Mexican and Guatemalan immigrants, is former deputy managing editor for The Barbed Wire. Her award-winning journalism is focused on issues of health, mental wellness, race, gender and social justice.
News
CEO Mark Zuckerberg has been quietly shifting toward a Republican-favored strategy for his leadership of social media giant Meta, announcing on Tuesday that he’s replacing a trusted fact-checking program with community notes, removing restrictions on topics like immigration and gender, and moving the company’s “trust and
Arts & Entertainment
If there’s one thing Beyoncé’s Christmas Day performance had, it was soul. On Dec. 25, during the halftime show at the Houston Texans vs. Baltimore Ravens game, the winningest-ever Grammy Award recipient wasn’t just joined by chart-topping celebrities and world-caliber vocalists. Beyoncé also invited
Crime & Justice
As if 2024 wasn’t already a mess (except for Beyoncé Bowl), just days before we flip the calendar to the New Year, the string of high-profile burglaries targeting professional athletes’ homes finally hit Texas. On Dec. 27, Dallas Mavericks’ beloved guard Luka Dončić’s home was reportedly broken
Culture
They say there’s magic in new beginnings. Our story starts about 20 miles northeast of downtown Austin, over a railroad crossing, and down a two-lane road. Go past an archway of giant tree limbs and toward the end of a long gravel driveway. There sits the Refugee Collective’
Culture
‘Twas the week before Christmas and all through the San Antonio Zoo, the creatures were stirring amid the slew of baby news. For the first time in 24 years, a new baby capybara was born on site Dec. 3, and he’s named Tupi (pronounced two-pee). Rachel Malstaff, the
Culture
Texas is the worst in the nation for quality of life, mental health care access, insurance, and food insecurity — and we’ve seen a 63% increase in gun deaths since Gov. Greg Abbott took office. But it’d be absurd for our elected officials to consider action on those issues,
Crime & Justice
EXCLUSIVE For most of her life, Lulu Francois believed her family history was a mystery lost to time. That changed when, during a Christmas gathering seven years ago, an aunt revealed she sometimes visited a small, unkempt cemetery in Comal County. There, migrants of Mexican descent are buried on a
Arts & Entertainment
Six months after the prestigious Dallas Black Dance Theatre chose to f*ck around — by wrongfully firing all of its dancers just days before the season was set to start — they’re now finding out the hard way that worker’s rights are protected by law. The theater reached a
Culture
While the rest of the Longhorn football entourage makes the trip to Atlanta for the SEC championship game, Bevo will stay home in Texas. Why? The SEC said the sidelines didn’t have room for Bevo XV’s 1,700 pounds and 58-inch horn span. “With the narrow sidelines,
Culture
What was supposed to be a postpartum checkup turned into immeasurable grief for a 20-year-old Texas woman, when she learned that doctors had sterilized her without her knowledge in September 2023. Rachel Richnow is suing Christus St. Michael Hospital in Texarkana, she told The Dallas Morning News, after
Money
During a time where California-based companies like Tesla and SpaceX have made Texas their playground, the $10 billion Texas brand Dickies is running the other way. Dickies was founded 102 years ago in Fort Worth for the “American Worker.” Now, it’s leaving to “revitalize” its brand. The move
Arts & Entertainment
This holiday season, instead of pouring your hard-earned money into the pockets of a Disney villain who’s destroying the Fourth Estate, let us help you cross items off your shopping list while helping you support small businesses owned by Black and Brown Texans. At The Barbed Wire, we