The Core Blog

In the first quarter of 2020, with the economy booming, car repossessions by auto title loan operations reached an all-time high — over 13,000 cars repossessed in one quarter. Fees for payday and auto title loans have also been trending up in Texas. These uncapped loans average 200% to 500% APR. In 2019, borrowers paid over $2 billion in fees for high-cost payday and auto title loans, with an average $500 loan costing $1,100 or

Texas has a long history of protecting wages from debt collection in the state constitution. This protection is essential, but current laws are antiquated. They protect current wages, but once wages are deposited in an account, protections often no longer apply. When debt collectors freeze accounts to collect an old debt, many Texans face a financial crisis: cascading defaults on housing, bills, and other debts, and no funds to pay for food or basic necessities

Recent news headlines point to the troubling trend of school privatization in this pivotal moment of history. It’s certainly nothing new; young people, parents, and community organizers have been fighting against concerted attacks on public education for decades. Sociologists like Dr. Eve L. Ewing have documented recent grassroots-led struggles against school boards that have proposed massive school closures in Chicago. There is certainly an inextricable link between the closure of public schools and increased enrollment

Today we mourn the loss of life and begin to see the catastrophic damage caused by Hurricane Laura. Compounding this devastation is the COVID-19 pandemic. This unfolding crisis is horrific and traumatic for everyone affected, regardless of class, race, age, and disability. Even as we care for all of those affected, the reality is that disasters, including catastrophic Category 4 hurricanes, do not affect everyone equally. Low-income neighborhoods and Black and Latinx communities, because of

In keeping with long struggles to secure civil rights and liberties for all people in the United States, efforts to gain equal access to educational opportunities have been led by Black, Indigenous, and people of color for centuries. From the Reconstruction era following the Civil War, to the Civil Rights Movement in the twentieth century, to the Movement for Black Lives in our present moment, historically underserved communities — led by those most directly impacted

We surveyed homeless liaisons across Texas to hear what is working and where they need help. Under federal law, every school district in the nation is required to have a homeless liaison. Homeless liaisons serve students experiencing homelessness by supplying resources and connecting them with help. While only 10 percent of Texas’ school districts receive federal grants to support their homeless liaisons, districts and staff are jumping into action to help students experiencing homelessness; and

We are living in an essential moment. A worldwide pandemic. A nation in mourning for the loss of life wrought by COVID-19. Now with the loss of another Black American who died at the hands of the police, we mourn anew all our brothers and sisters who have died as a result of police violence. Last year at this time, Texas Appleseed was launching our “Justice Is” campaign, focused on engaging Texans in a conversation

The COVID-19 pandemic is an unprecedented disaster in scope and scale. America’s disaster response and recovery system is designed to deal with localized disasters and assumes that people have the resources to recover quickly. COVID-19 is a nationwide disaster that has been ongoing for months, with an economic impact that has stripped millions of Americans of the resources to pay rent and buy food. Many Texans are all too familiar with major disasters and FEMA

With the ongoing public health emergency, COVID-19, Texas Appleseed is working to ensure that we are doing all we can for young people experiencing homelessness. As the closure of schools and businesses continues, many young people are without a place to go or consistent income. To identify what issues young people are facing and potential solutions, Texas Appleseed is regularly convening with a group of Central Texas service providers, policymakers, and national advocates to check

Many Americans have received federal stimulus funds or have money coming their way to offer a small help to weather the current economic crisis caused by the coronavirus pandemic. People with bank account information associated with a 2018 or 2019 tax return saw funds deposited as early as April 9. For others, checks will likely be mailed over a period of a few months, starting in late April or early May, and beginning with the

Texas Appleseed sent a letter to Texas Insurance Commissioner Kent Sullivan, asking the Department to make sure Texans are charged fair prices for auto insurance during and after the pandemic. With much of the state under shelter-in-place orders, mobility of Texans is down 40% to 55% since the escalation of the pandemic in late February. This reduced mobility has translated into fewer claims for auto insurers. Over the past week, a growing number of auto

As COVID-19 spreads across the nation and Texas, local jails are becoming hotspots in the pandemic, putting people’s lives in danger and further straining local health systems. Public health experts and physicians have repeatedly warned that if COVID-19 enters a correctional facility, it will spread much more rapidly and be difficult to contain. Widespread outbreaks have already been reported in jails in other states including New York and Illinois. An outbreak in a jail doesn’t